Technology Description
The current invention provides novel compositions and methods of producing aluminum-borate NLO crystals with highly controlled compositions of dopants and minimal undesirable contaminants. These NLO crystals can generate an output wavelength of less than 300nm and in some embodiments, less than 175nm.
Features & Benefits
Applications
Background of Invention
The optical properties of nonlinear optical (NLO) materials are modified by light passing through the materials. The modification of the optical properties may be caused by an induced polarization that acts as an oscillating dipole. If the polarization is nonlinear, the frequency of the light emerging from the material may be some integer value times the frequency of the incident light. For example, the net effect of frequency doubling is that two photons with a given frequency combine to generate a single photon having double that frequency. In such a manner, NLO materials can be used to generate lasers in the UV region of the spectrum which would have great utility in a broad range of applications. Aluminum-borate NLO crystals grown with conventional techniques are generally limited to the generation or emission of light at wavelengths greater than 370 nm, so there is a need for materials that can generate emission at shorter wavelengths.
Status
US Patents No. 7,534,377; 8,062,420; and 9,228,273