M
Squared Lasers Ltd
SolsTiS
Narrow Linewidth, Tunable CW Ti:Sapphire Laser
User Manual
v10.0
Tools to Help You Lead, Not Follow™
Page 1: ...M Squared Lasers Ltd SolsTiS Narrow Linewidth Tunable CW Ti Sapphire Laser User Manual v10 0 Tools to Help You Lead Not Follow ...
Page 2: ...e xiv D 7 Sources of Additional Safety Information xv E ROHS WEEE CE COMPLIANCE STATEMENT XV E 1 RoHS Directive 2002 95 EC xv E 2 WEEE Directive 2002 96 EC xvi F CE DECLARATION OF CONFORMITY XVII G STANDARD UNITS ABBREVIATIONS XVIII H LIST OF FIGURES XIX I COPYRIGHT INFORMATION XX 1 INTRODUCTION 1 2 SYSTEM DESCRIPTION 2 2 1 System Overview 2 2 2 System Configuration 3 2 3 SolsTiS Models Standard S...
Page 3: ... Tuning Scanning 29 5 3 Storing User Settings 34 5 4 Shutting Down the SolsTiS Laser System 34 5 5 Purging SolsTiS 34 6 MAINTENANCE TROUBLESHOOTING 35 6 1 Recommended Maintenance Schedule 35 6 2 Monitoring Intracavity Photodiodes and Voltages 36 6 3 Troubleshooting Tips 36 7 CUSTOMER SERVICE 37 8 WARRANTY 39 APPENDIX A CLEANING LASER OPTICS GENERAL GUIDELINES 40 APPENDIX B PUMP LASERS ASSESSED FOR...
Page 4: ...n your purchase but in all these cases the use of your designated pump laser with SolsTiS should have been discussed and agreed to by M Squared Lasers at the time of your SolsTiS purchase If this was not the case please do not attempt to install or operate your SolsTiS system before you have contacted M Squared Lasers to confirm suitability of your pump laser If installation is included as part of...
Page 5: ...uire extra attention Danger Laser radiation is present Danger Condition or action may present an electrical hazard to the user Warning Condition or action may cause equipment damage safety hazard or poor performance Caution Exercise particular care and or refer to the manual before proceeding Note Text noting special circumstances or tips ...
Page 6: ...module 1 SolsTiS netbook control computer 1 Power supply SolsTiS netbook control computer 1 Pump laser system if applicable Pump Integration Kit PIK manual pump steering mirror 1 Automated Pump Alignment Module APAM if applicable Cable IEC AC mains control computer 1 Cable IEC AC mains SolsTiS control module 1 Cable IEC AC mains other Cable Ethernet 2m SolsTiS controller to netbook 1 Cable BNC MCX...
Page 7: ...NNECT AC CORD BEFORE CHANGING FUSE PRIOR TO SYSTEM USE REVIEW REFER TO AND USE ALL INSTRUCTIONS AND SAFETY PRECAUTIONS LISTED IN ALL MANUALS PROVIDED WITH THIS SYSTEM D 2 Laser Safety Danger When used with a pump laser the SolsTiS laser system is a Class IV high power laser whose beam by definition is a safety and fire hazard Take precautions to prevent exposure to direct and reflected beams Diffu...
Page 8: ...at the laser output beam as even diffuse or scattered reflections can be hazardous Avoid wearing jewellery or other objects such as watches that may reflect or scatter the laser output beam Avoid blocking the output beam or its reflection with any part of the body or flammable material Expand the beam whenever possible to reduce its optical power density Operate the laser at the lowest possible ou...
Page 9: ...units or interconnecting Pump Integration Kit PIK and associated Pump Optics Module POM Operating with any cover removed including the covered beam path between your pump laser and POM and between POM and SolsTiS is prohibited voids your warranty risks contamination of optical surfaces and may expose people to high voltages and or laser radiation hazards Neither the SolsTiS and pump laser head nor...
Page 10: ...sTiS pump laser system to turn on the safety interlock contacts on the pump laser control unit must be either wired to a safety switch supplied by the user or shorted together The pump laser should be shipped with a shorting plug connected to the interlock connector To wire an external safety switch to the interlock circuit either re wire the supplied connector or use a similar connector Wire the ...
Page 11: ...The shutter s interlock fault and fail safe mode should be the closed position Key Switch The pump laser should include a key switch to prevent use of the system by unauthorized personnel If your pump laser does not include this please do not attempt to operate your system before you have contacted M Squared Lasers It should not be possible to activate the pump laser and hence SolsTiS unless the k...
Page 12: ...iS SRX with Coherent Verdi View from output end For location and explanation of pump laser safety labels please consult your pump laser manual Figure 5 IEC CE CDRH radiation control drawing showing locations of SolsTiS safety labels see Figure 7 Example shown SolsTiS SRX with Coherent Verdi View from pump input end For location and explanation of pump laser safety labels please consult your pump l...
Page 13: ...E CDRH radiation control drawing SolsTiS control unit Two models shown exact location of labels shown in Figure 7 may vary by model Figure 7 SolsTiS IEC CE CDRH safety labels numbers refer to the locations of labels shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5 ...
Page 14: ...ible en cas d ouverture éviter la peau ou de l oeil à l exposition a la laser rayonnement directe ou diffus Vorsicht Beim öffnen Austritt von sichtbare und unsichtbarer Laserstrahlung Bestrahlung von Auge oder Haut durch direkte oder Streustrahlung vermeiden Gevaar Zichtbare en onzichtbare laserstraling wanneer geopend vermijd blootstelling aan huid of oog aan directe of verstrooide straling Table...
Page 15: ... Orlando FL 32826 Toll Free 1 800 345 2737 Telephone 1 407 380 1553 Fax 1 407 380 5588 Web http www laserinstitute org Laser Focus World Buyer s Guide Web http www laserfocusworld com Photonics Spectra Buyer s Guide Web http www photonics com E RoHS WEEE CE Compliance Statement M Squared Lasers is committed to minimizing the environmental impact of our products and operations and to complying with...
Page 16: ...led or disposed of according to local regulations The symbol shown in Figure 8 indicates WEEE material and anything carrying this mark should be collected separately and processed according to local regulations M Squared products subject to the WEEE directive e are marked with this symbol In order to prevent WEEE the Directive encourages re use recycling and other forms of recovery over disposal A...
Page 17: ...cal safety The product of the declaration above has been designed and manufactured to be in compliance with the requirements of the following standards and the results of testing and assessment are included in the Technical Documentation EN 60825 1 Edition 2 0 2007 03 Safety of Laser Products EN 61010 1 Edition 2 0 2001 02 Safety requirements for electrical equipment for measurement control and la...
Page 18: ...d OC Output coupler OPO Optical parametric oscillator PC Personal Computer ps picosecond 10 12 second PIK Pump Integration Kit POM SolsTiS Pump Optics Module PSU power supply unit PZT piezo electric transducer RF Radio frequency SLM Single longitudinal frequency mode TEM Transverse electromagnetic spatial mode Ti S Titanium doped sapphire THz Terahertz D UV Deep Ultraviolet Prefixes Tera 10 12 T M...
Page 19: ...ted reference cavity 2 Table 2 SolsTiS product family and linewidth options 3 Figure 10 Simplified diagram of the longitudinal frequency modes of a laser cavity L half round trip cavity length c speed of light 4 Figure 11 Schematic illustration of SolsTiS intracavity layout and reference cavity SolsTiS model SRX 5 Figure 12 Illustration of the ICE BLOC control concept 7 Figure 13 Schematic of Sols...
Page 20: ...ssion of the publisher ICE BLOC controllers SolsTiS and the M Squared logo are UK registered trademarks of M Squared Lasers Ltd M Squared Ltd disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and trade names other than its own Windows and Internet Explorer are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries The information in this manual is provided for infor...
Page 21: ...ties with which to push application boundaries We believe SolsTiS to be the smallest lowest noise highest efficiency and only fully automated laser of its type but we welcome your feedback comments and suggestions If after reading this manual or any other documentation that accompanies your system you have any questions concerns or comments please do not hesitate to contact us or your M Squared La...
Page 22: ...TiS generates CW continuously tuneable output over a wide range of near IR wavelengths with a wide range of linewidth tuning range and output power pump power options available In addition SolsTiS can be pumped by a wide range of third party pump lasers and is available in unique 3 12W integrated pump laser packages please inquire Optional accessories include compact high efficiency ECD harmonic g...
Page 23: ...ire 4 Netbook computer with software UI which allows control of SolsTiS frequency tuning locking and scanning via the supplied the UI running on a standard Web browser Communication between the control PC and SolsTiS is via any cable WAN LAN or Internet based Ethernet connection to the ICE BLOC control unit 5 High Power Pump Cooling Kit if applicable 8W pump lasers only This kit is shipped integra...
Page 24: ... is for example a highly efficient ideal pump source for Ti S SolsTiS can be pumped by any commercially available CW green DPSS laser via optional factory configuration for the selected pump source Ultimately the lasing tuning range achieved is determined by a number of factors including cavity mirror coatings loss pump power and pumping efficiency gain number and type of intracavity elements loss...
Page 25: ...ype all adjustments in SolsTiS are hands free and computer controlled via the included software UI In order to enable SolsTiS to oscillate on a single frequency if required spatial hole burning effects in the gain medium must be removed This is achieved in SolsTiS by using the well known bow tie ring cavity geometry This together with an optical diode forces the ring cavity to operate uni directio...
Page 26: ...50kHz measured relative to the reference cavity Slaving SolsTiS to the reference cavity is accomplished by directing a small fraction of SolsTiS output to the reference cavity and then locking SolsTiS output frequency to a reference cavity fringe using a SolsTiS cavity mirror mounted on a fast PZT In SolsTiS a dual stack PZT is used on one cavity mirror with one PZT devoted to frequency scanning a...
Page 27: ...al communication protocols are many making Ethernet control the best choice whether seeking to communicate with an instrument placed next to the control PC direct cable connection or remotely over very long distances via an Internet connection These many advantages include higher speed greater robustness effectively infinite communication distance without the need for repeaters elimination of dedi...
Page 28: ...Service Engineer to install your system Your SolsTiS system was configured and optimised at M Squared Lasers factory for pumping with the third party pump laser and nominal pump power stipulated on your sales order Depending on your designated pump laser SolsTiS may have been supplied with a baseplate designed to allow close integration of the pump laser head with the SolsTiS laser head Similarly ...
Page 29: ...tes with the supplied SolsTiS wavelength control unit via Ethernet see Section 3 4 below Indicators The SolsTiS laser head has no embedded indicators Indicators showing SolsTiS output wavelength and depending on model parameters related to frequency and lock status but not output power level or laser emission status are displayed in the supplied software UI as discussed in Section 3 4 Connections ...
Page 30: ...y The POM contains a mirror pair that may be used to route and align the pump beam safely between the pump beam output aperture and the SolsTiS input port Controls In order to optimise pump beam alignment the second mirror in the POM may be adjusted manually by the user if needed by small movements of the screws Only VERY SMALL movements are needed Do NOT touch the z axis screw Only the x y axes s...
Page 31: ...6 SolsTiS wavelength control unit front and rear views The advantages of Ethernet control over more conventional communication protocols are many and include higher speed greater robustness effectively infinite communication distance without the need for repeaters elimination of dedicated software drivers because control is via Web based browser interface and the ability to network multiplex multi...
Page 32: ...d be connected to the ETALON PD input cable O should be connected to the OUTPUT PD jack and if applicable cable R should be connected to the REF CAV PD jack and cable A connected to AUXILIARY PD 2 MCX connectors circled blue in Figure 18 the two Monitor outputs allow signals from the SolsTiS control electronics to be viewed on an oscilloscope The two Monitor outputs are for the optional use of the...
Page 33: ...p laser emission is present or not SolsTiS and pump laser emission deactivation and emission status can be accessed only via your pump laser control unit Caution Please refer to your PC manual for all precautions safety operating and maintenance instructions for this PC Warning To ensure compliance with laser safety regulations the pump laser and its laser emission warning indicator must always be...
Page 34: ...ays the measured laser output wavelength in nm as measured by the proprietary onboard wavelength monitoring device Temperature displays the temperature of the Reference Cavity and indication of whether the temperature is currently within acceptable limits Cavity Etalon lock the current state of the Cavity Etalon lock circuit displays NOT LOCKED LOCKED or LOCK ERROR 3 6 Water Chiller High Power Pum...
Page 35: ...olsTiS User Manual v10 0 Figure 20 SolsTiS UI system configuration page Figure 21 SolsTiS UI Ethernet network settings page Figure 22 SolsTiS UI clock set page Figure 23 SolsTiS UI user accounts setup page ...
Page 36: ...l v10 0 Figure 24 SolsTiS software UI firmware update page Figure 25 SolsTiS software UI APAM accessory setup page Figure 26 SolsTiS software UI saved file management page Figure 27 SolsTiS UI étalon custom dither frequency ...
Page 37: ...ontrol page This is the main page for operating the SolsTiS laser system and allows the user to perform scans around particular wavelengths of interest Please refer to Chapter 5 for a more detailed description of the functions of this page and how to use them ...
Page 38: ... was ordered for use with 8W pump power your SolsTiS should have been purchased with a SolsTiS High Power Cooling Kit that provides a small flow of supplemental cooling water to the SolsTiS laser head either split off from an existing pump laser water chiller or from a water chiller purchased with your SolsTiS system Note While the highly efficient design of the SolsTiS laser head means that in ge...
Page 39: ...on your pump laser is in place or if you are in a limited access laser safety area remove the shorting plug and wire it to a perimeter safety switch This switch must be wired so that the switch opens and laser output is terminated in the case of unauthorized inadvertent access to the designated laser hazard area Warning Verify that any voltage selection switches or jumpers on electronics supplied ...
Page 40: ... void your warranty Caution Do not apply AC power to the SolsTiS control unit which may cause a change in SolsTiS output wavelength until after SolsTiS has been installed with the designated pump laser and its optical performance has been verified against the factory Final Test sheet per instructions in Chapter 5 Wavelength tuning and depending on the SolsTiS model purchased frequency scanning and...
Page 41: ...ork to which he is connected instead just viewing a list of IP addresses This feature is now a feature of all personal computers but is not yet implemented in M Squared ICE BLOC control modules such as the SolsTiS Wavelength Control Unit When a computer is plugged into a network it will have a MAC address but commonly it will not already have an IP address Through a standard process called DHCP Dy...
Page 42: ... control is used there is no software to install no serial ports to configure no USB drivers to contend with and no power up sequence Simply plug the supplied 2m long Ethernet cable between the laptop and ICE BLOC module and switch both devices on The ICE BLOC should take under 30 seconds to boot up much faster than the PC As soon as the PC is ready start up Internet Explorer the default browser o...
Page 43: ...optical alignment procedure to be performed for the SolsTiS laser system due to the use of M Squared Lasers proprietary InvarianT alignment free opto mechanical mounts used throughout The SolsTiS laser head is a sealed design that must never be opened Opening the laser head may expose the user to safety hazards result in damage and will void your warranty When the installation procedure has been c...
Page 44: ... mechanical shock to the SolsTiS laser head which may be heavy and require more than one person to lift and manoeuver it safely place the SolsTiS laser head and baseplate in a suitable location per the guidelines discussed in Section 4 3 3 Make sure the SolsTiS baseplate is free of burrs deep scratches and dirt to ensure good thermal contact with the baseplate and the bottom of the pump laser 4 Ta...
Page 45: ...hence maximum SolsTiS output power 1 The laser system has not been used before and is being installed for the first time 2 The laser system has been previously installed but the ambient temperature differs significantly from the last time the system was operated 3 The laser system has not been used for a considerable period 4 The laser system does not contain the optional APAM automated pump beam ...
Page 46: ...e severe skin or eye damage This damage can be instantaneous and or permanent 2 If applicable turn on your water chiller 3 Activate your pump laser at low power 0 1W per the pump laser manufacturer s instructions 4 Dimming the room lights if needed confirm that the pump beam position is aligned optimally on the second mirror in the POM as shown in the photograph in your Final Test Sheet See the ex...
Page 47: ...ion that the pump beam is aligned through the SolsTiS cavity 5 If no residual green beam is seen on the card a Try turn of the X axis on the second POM mirror b If a residual green beam is still not seen on the card try turn of the X axis on the second POM mirror 6 Once you have located the residual green pump beam at the SolsTiS output port check that this beam is approximately centred on the Sol...
Page 48: ...ck SolsTiS output power is optimised by making small turns of the X and Y adjusts of the second POM mirror one at a time using the 2mm Allen key and observing SolsTiS output power on the power meter NOTE SolsTiS output power is not sensitive to the Z position of the POM mirrors and the POM mirrors should therefore not be adjusted for lateral translation Initialising the SolsTiS Control Unit and UI...
Page 49: ...length Tuning Scanning Coarse Wavelength Tuning Adjusting the Intracavity BRF Using the BRF Tune radio buttons on the laser CONTROL page of the UI is possible to set the SolsTiS output wavelength to within approximately one étalon FSR or better of the required wavelength of interest 0 15 0 7nm depending on the SolsTiS model purchased This wavelength tuning control has an acceleration algorithm tha...
Page 50: ...r s target wavelength the user can then move to the Etalon Tune adjustment This control allows the user to fine tune the set wavelength through a range of more than one étalon FSR 0 15 0 7nm depending on the model purchased Note Use of a high precision wavemeter is recommended to allow the user to observe the sub 0 1nm wavelength changes that can be made with the Etalon Tune control Note Before st...
Page 51: ...ngth the Etalon Lock button on the laser control page of the UI may be pushed This locks the peak of the étalon transmission function to the nearest longitudinal mode frequency that is oscillating in the SolsTiS laser cavity The indicator on the left hand status window will confirm the lock condition Note It is recommended that SolsTiS wavelength is monitored via a high precision wavemeter as the ...
Page 52: ...ored on a CRO by selecting Ref Cavity V from the drop down menu of one of the two user configurable Monitor outputs as shown in the expanded view of the laser control page above Ideally to ensure the reference cavity locking circuit has the widest possible capture range the reference cavity voltage should be centred at 50 2V If this is not the case and especially if the voltage is close to the edg...
Page 53: ...avelength minus half of the scan width This is the minimum point The wavelength is then increased until it is equal to the resonator tune wavelength plus half the scan width This is the maximum point The time for the wavelength to ramp from the minimum point to the maximum point is defined by the scan Time field There are three options for scanning Cavity continuous the scan is run as described at...
Page 54: ... vapour absorption lines With its unique sealed laser head SolsTiS is far less likely to require gas purging than more conventional open architecture systems Furthermore SolsTiS unique alignment free design removes the need to open the cavity which would otherwise result in a loss of purge gas and the need for time consuming re purging of the head In addition SolsTiS unique miniaturized head desig...
Page 55: ... system is an alignment and maintenance free device Occasional careful cleaning of the SolsTiS laser head external input and output windows only when absolutely needed and only by using the procedure for cleaning laser optics described in Appendix A Warning Incorrect or unnecessary cleaning of SolsTiS input or output window may result in a laser safety hazard and or damage to the optical surface o...
Page 56: ...p beam steering mirrors in the POM should be made see Chapter 5 The Z axis should NOT be touched as this can cause gross misalignment and potentially harm the laser Dirt Contamination on External Optics Windows The SolsTiS laser head Pump Optics Module and typically also the pump laser head are sealed maintenance free designs and contain no optics or other intracavity components that can be cleane...
Page 57: ...b www m2lasers com Worldwide Representatives France Optoprim France 21 23 rue Aristide Briand 92170 VANVES France Tel 33 0 1 41 90 61 80 Fax 33 0 1 41 90 61 89 E mail info optoprim com Web www optoprim com Germany and Austria Soliton GmbH Talhofstraße 32 D 82205 Gilching Germany Tel 49 8105 7792 0 Fax 49 8105 7792 77 E mail info soliton gmbh de Web www soliton gmbh de Turkey CS Analitik Ergin Soka...
Page 58: ...80 Beijing P R China Tel 8610 62565117 8610 84413925 26 71 Fax 8610 62565117 11 Web www pulsepower cn E mail info pulsepower cn ETSC Technologies Co 9 F Building 1 SBI Dongxin Road East Lake Hi Tech Development Zone Wuhan Hubei 430074 P R China Tel 86 27 87807925 86 27 87170152 86 27 87412681 Fax 86 27 87807133 E mail sales etsc tech com Web www etsc tech com India Singapore Malaysia Acexon Techno...
Page 59: ...epresentative of M Squared Any repairs or replacement equipment is then warranted only for the remainder of the original warranty period that is applicable to the repaired or replaced items All exchanged parts and products replaced under this Warranty will become the property of M Squared This Warranty is valid only if M Squared products are assembled installed and operated according to the instru...
Page 60: ...ds for specific optics in any specific laser system Please refer to Chapter 6 of this manual before attempting to clean any optic in the laser system described in this manual Deciding If Cleaning May be Necessary General Inspection of Optics While particulates a trace of dirt a scratch or a contaminant film can degrade a laser s output cleaning optics is not a mandatory part of a regular maintenan...
Page 61: ...ould also lead to safety hazard and or result in damage to an optical surface that could require a Return to Factory repair The only optic that can be cleaned by the user and only then if absolutely necessary per the guidelines above is the output window If dirt or contamination is found on the output window the following cleaning procedure should be used 1 Record the laser system output power and...
Page 62: ... by M Squared Lasers as compatible with SolsTiS when used correctly with SolsTiS per instructions in this and other manuals included with your SolsTiS system This list neither constitutes a recommendation of or preference for any of the pump lasers listed nor a guarantee of satisfactory use safe use or any particular specified performance when used with SolsTiS Similarly if a pump laser is not cur...
Page 63: ... Resonator Fast input should therefore only be used for applying modulation at relatively high frequencies The useful range is between 25kHz and 100kHZ taking care to avoid the etalon dither frequency Resonator Slow external input The Resonator Slow input connects to the input of a high voltage amplifier which drives a long stroke piezo mirror in the laser resonator This input is intended for scan...
Page 64: ...ammable input output The function of this connector is programmable using the Supervisor Options page At present it allows external electrical on off control of the etalon dither signal When enabled the UI control of dither On Off is disabled ...
Page 65: ... and offset commands are redirected to the laser resonator piezo This enables the resonator to be scanned directly without being slaved to a reference cavity The system remains calibrated in the usual way but the resulting scans will be in the opposite polarity There is also an option to bypass the external reference cavity even if one is included with the laser This is achieved on the UI by selec...
