nd:YAG questions

[Henry]

Have a nd:YAG and it have a Q-switch but i havent got time to fire the laser up yet mostly because it doesnt have PSU and im kinda little scared of it as well. But i just want to se if it work at all but first without tinkering with anything like the Q-switch for example. So what i first wonder is if the Q-switch would be totally transparent to the laser or if it is opaque when nothing is connected to it? And would absolutely wont take any damage at all if it isnt connected in any way when the laser is fired up?

Then i guess this Q-switch is an active type due to two connectors on it. Thats a pitty as i see it because it will require more work for not to say electronics if im not wrong compared to passive ones if i want to use it.

BTW what would be a qualified guess that the arctube (yes, it has one pointy end and the other round) would need to at least make something out of the laser? Bead to bead its about 9 inch long and 0.27 OD.

Discharge a capacitorbank into these isnt what they are built for and can break quite easily what i have heard, but if you only use not bigger bank then the laser would just lase shouldnt be in the region that it could break? The last thing i want is to break it and second to reduce the lamp life, so not more energy then necessary for the laser to lase if possible.

Havent worked much with these types of flashtube lasers so better safe then sorry.

[Laserman532]

Have a nd:YAG and it have a Q-switch but i havent got time to fire the laser up yet mostly because it doesnt have PSU and im kinda little scared of it as well. But i just want to se if it work at all but first without tinkering with anything like the Q-switch for example. So what i first wonder is if the Q-switch would be totally transparent to the laser or if it is opaque when nothing is connected to it? And would absolutely wont take any damage at all if it isnt connected in any way when the laser is fired up?

Then i guess this Q-switch is an active type due to two connectors on it. Thats a pitty as i see it because it will require more work for not to say electronics if im not wrong compared to passive ones if i want to use it.

BTW what would be a qualified guess that the arctube (yes, it has one pointy end and the other round) would need to at least make something out of the laser? Bead to bead its about 9 inch long and 0.27 OD.

Discharge a capacitorbank into these isnt what they are built for and can break quite easily what i have heard, but if you only use not bigger bank then the laser would just lase shouldnt be in the region that it could break? The last thing i want is to break it and second to reduce the lamp life, so not more energy then necessary for the laser to lase if possible.

Havent worked much with these types of flashtube lasers so better safe then sorry.

I assume you are describing a CW YAG laser that includes a AO q switch.

assuming the above - the qs is relatively clear to the 1064 line

There is no reason for being scared of it..it is so far from being a running optical hazard your biggest concern at this point is possibly dropping it on your foot...

with all kidding aside, pics would be helpful, and more information such as is it water cooled?

we need to determine if it is a pulsed lamp or a cw first.

[Henry]

Thanks for the answer! You are right and its a CW YAG with a q-switch and that was good to know that its clear to the laser at idle and so it wont be destroyed if i would fire the laser som pulses if possible. Onfortuantly the laser is CW as far as i know about it and what it says on the sign on it.

Im ofcource not scare about the Q-switch neither the lamp or anything else on it, its the laser it self nothing else due to its power. But it was 50% joking about it but also 50% serious as well.

The laser is a 180W CW according to the sign on it and the Q-switch and YAG rod are both water cooled.

Will search for some picture on the computer i have taken on it before to put up some here that might help a little more.

The q-switch is the first one in this link:

http://www.sintecoptronics.com/qswitch.htm



Finally found some pictures on it:

[mixedgas]

Well... that is a Meditech Reinhard Thysal resonator.

It has identical rails/adjustment mounts to the Meditech Argon family

Don't drop that on your foot, those rods weigh a ton..

Steve

[mixedgas]

Well... that is a Meditech Reinhard Thysal resonator.

It has identical rails/adjustment mounts to the Meditech Argon family

Don't drop that on your foot, those rods weigh a ton..

PAT you must be prescient...

Steve

[Henry]

Meditech Reinhard Thysal, interesting and one more company to look up. There are a sticker though on back of the laser that says Spectrum Laser Systems and this laser have been working as a marker at a factory before. The rods might weigh some no doubt about that but its not close to what the entire laser weigh. It required me and a friend to lift it up to the second floor and that was not easy. You can lift it up by your self but its not that easy, but walk around with it or even drag it up to the second floor just wont happen.

[gogu]

Hi Henry,

There is a tag on that q-switch, would you be able to take a picture of it?
27Mhz Gooch & Housego?

what is that contraption between what appears to be a shutter and the scanhead?
internal power meter, pointer, ktp?

would you be interested in tearing it apart and taking more pictures?
i was just reading through directed light downloadable parts list, and it had this little bit on igniting a similar lamp as you have in that laser:

DC Arclamps

are operated in a continuous wave (CW) mode and discharge a constant current in

the 10-40 Amp range between 100-250 Volts. The continuous light radiated induces constant gain
in the Nd:YAG rod, generating a continuous laser beam. Krypton gas is almost always selected for
CW applications because it is more efficient than Xenon at these power levels; in fact, these lamps
are universally known as Krypton arclamps. For increased efficiency, they are filled to very high
pressures, typically 5-10 atmospheres. Violent explosions can result from mishandling, so safety
glasses should be worn during handling and installation.
These high pressures make Krypton arclamps difficult to start because of their high impedance.
Therefore, fairly complex starting circuitry must be employed: first, a short duration (approximately
one microsecond) high voltage (20-30kv) trigger pulse is applied to the lamp, which causes an
initial ionization of the gas. Next, a boost circuit drives a low current through the lamp at
moderate voltage for a few milliseconds after which the main power supply can take over and

run the lamp at its normal operating current and voltage (typically 20 amps at 150 Volts).

nice laser Henry

cheers

[Experimentonomen]

Where did you get that and for how much ?

[dar303]

It was very cheap and up on Elektronikforumet.com about a year ago or so. I also bid but let it go eventually...too many projects!

[Henry]

dar303 so you recognized it? Yes its Henry from SEF and yes it was very cheap even if it would be without the scanhead that was included. Too many project was going on for me as well at that time and still are but i thought that this might be one in a lifetime offer, especially for that price with an scanhead included, so i thought what the hell. The controlling program i got that is for the scanhead need a kind of a hardware key to make it communicate with the head and i ofcourse dont have one and cant get one either as it seem. So i dont know but the signal that is controlling it seem to be very simple type of X and Y coordinates based on a voltage i think but thats the next thing to work with.

The laser will be going more or less some day but CW 180W will never ever happen due to many things; first of all that i wont need that power levels to anything and its just to dangerous and i dont have the power in the house for it either i guess. Pulsemode if possible and then maybe high levels with the unfortunately "active" Q-switch absolutely but since its an arclamp in this laser so might that not be possible. Feels a little unsafe with the high pressures these have even if its enclosed but in that case so would i need to change this to an ordinary flashlamp and as said before these have a very high pressure inside them and i dont want a smaller explosion inside that for example might damage the rod.

Didnt you dar303 have have a strobe on 1500W or so, or i might be thinkning about someone else? That should be enough i think to make it lase and maybe put something out and these flashlamps wasnt that expensive if im not recollect wrong. This would be xenon but it should work anyway, so i might buy one like that instead and try.


gogu; the box between the shutter and scanhead is unfortunalty nothing that exotic its only a focusing device.






All info on the Q-switch is this sticker:





If i can tear the laser apart? No not really but i can take apart where the rod and flashlight are but no more than that so there wont get in any dust in the optics.





Little suprised first time i openened this up some time ago that there isnts any reflecting coating. But it might not hold due to the imens power from the lamp perhaps so glased cheramics could only be used instead which this seem to be.

Have read about arclamps before but thanks anyway for the info.