Interactions of Self-Trapped Beams Generated with a Miniature Green Laser in a Photopolymerizable Medium

Abstract

<p>This study examined the self-trapping of light emitted by a miniature green laser in a photopolymerizable medium and the interactions between two parallel-propagating self-trapped beams. The work included the design and fabrication of an Intra-Cavity Frequency-Doubling (IC-FD) Nd: YVO₄/MgO: PPLN miniature green laser with a stable and tunable output intensity. Emission from this laser enabled a systematic examination of self-trapping phenomena at incident intensities spanning 8 orders of magnitude (3.2× W·cm^-2to 6368 W·cm^-2). When launched into a photopolymerizable medium, light emitted by the miniature green laser self-trapped by initiating polymerization and corresponding changes in refractive index along its propagation path. The evolution and dynamics of the self-trapped beam corresponded to the behaviour of self-trapped beams of coherent light. Interactions between a pair of parallel-propagating self-trapped beams were also characterised at a range of intensities. This study shows that the miniature green laser is an efficient, coherent source with a large range of output intensities for the excitation of self-trapped beams. This opens opportunities for its incorporation into small-scale optical systems designed to operate based on the generation and interactions of self-trapped beams.</p>