Q Peak

About Q Peak

Q Peak is a company that received a Department of Defense SBIR/STTR grant for a project entitled: Improved High-Power Pump Couplers. The abstract given for this project is as follows: Recent advances in fiber lasers have shown their potential for power scaling to Directed Energy (DE) levels. Many of the high-power, cladding-pumped, large-mode-area (LMA) fiber systems demonstrated in the laboratory have employed free-space optics to couple the diode-laser pump power into the pump cladding of the fiber. While the approach is useful for power-scaling demonstrations, it is not practical for operational lasers in terms of both reliability and ruggedness. In the work proposed here, we plan to develop and test high-power, all-fiber pump combiners to replace free-space optics for pump transport and allow construction of 'all-glass' fiber lasers. The pump couplers must be compatible with polarization-maintaining (PM) LMA fibers used in the beam-combined systems needed to generate DE power levels. Also, given the interest, for some applications, in 'eyesafer' DE systems, the couplers should work with not only Yb-doped fibers, but also with Tm-doped, 2-micron-wavelength fibers. Q Peak is a company that received a Department of Defense SBIR/STTR grant for a project entitled: Tm:fiber-based Solid State Active Sensor. The abstract given for this project is as follows: Advances in diode-pumped solid state lasers and high-quality nonlinear materials have facilitated development of broadly tunable, all-solid-state, mid- and long-band infrared sources suitable for countermeasures and long-range sensing of targets and threats. Present systems are based on bulk-crystal pump lasers, either 1064-nm wavelength neodymium-doped or 2000-nm-region, holmium- or thulium-doped lasers, combined with suitable nonlinear wavelength converters, such as optical parametric oscillators (OPOs). Recent advances in high-power fiber lasers suggest that they can replace the bulk devices as pump sources, with the advantages of reduced sensitivity to environmental changes, simplified thermal management and greater packaging flexibility. In a related area, the same large-core fiber designs used in the lasers can provide a robust means to deliver pump power to different locations in the platform of interest. We propose to design and develop an innovative, efficient, IR-generation system that combines a flexible waveform/wavelength generator, an efficient, fiber-based power amplifier, a fiber delivery system and a fiber-coupled OPO.BENEFIT: The system design, with all the elements optically connected via rugged, low-loss, fiber, allows for maximum flexibility in deployment on different platforms, as well as allowing modular service of the components. Potential commercial applications include fence-line monitors at industrial sites, needed to meet Clean Air Act requirements and process-control monitors designed to detect and quantify small quantities of gases crucial to a particular chemical process. Q Peak is a company that received a Department of Defense SBIR/STTR grant for a project entitled: Eyesafer Fiber Laser Technology for Shipboard Defense. The abstract given for this project is as follows: Q-Peak has recently developed 'eyesafer' high-power, efficient, thulium (Tm)-doped, 2050-nm-wavelength silica fiber (Tm:fiber) lasers that have the potential to scale up to the power levels needed for shipboard defense. The longer wavelength cannot pass through to the retina and hence presents a greatly reduced eye hazard. Requirements for laser beam quality depend on the nature of the threat, but the most challenging threats demand near-diffraction-limited beams. In the work proposed here, we will investigate the fundamental limits to power, with diffraction-limited beam quality, from a single Tm:fiber laser. This will determine the system design architecture for high-power directed-energy systems, particularly how many individual fiber lasers are needed for coherent beam- combined systems. Q Peak is a company that received a Department of Defense SBIR/STTR grant for a project entitled: High Power Blue-Green Laser Sources. The abstract given for this project is as follows: In this proposed Phase I program, we will study methods of generating blue-green laser radiation. Such sources are of great interest to the Navy for both anti-submarine warfare and communications at depth and speed, as blue-green light matches the minimum of seawater transmission for a variety of conditions. In addition, there are military applications in pumping Ti:Sapphire lasers for stable clocks as well as applications for bioinstrumentation, displays, and fundamental research. We propose to study methods of generating blue-green radiation by either fiber-laser or crystalline solid-state laser sources. In both cases, several frequency conversion steps may be required. For fiber- laser-based sources, we propose to investigate Raman oscillators to shift the fiber sources to the red and nonlinear frequency conversion (second, third, and fourth harmonic generation) to convert wavelengths into the blue-green range. For solid-state lasers, optical parametric oscillators will be investigated to generate tunable blue-green wavelengths. An optimal combination of frequency conversion will be sought that maximizes both efficiency and power scalability, among other properties. Maturity and availability of the technology will be considered in choosing amongst the candidate technologies. The result of the Phase I program will be to identify the best path to an efficient multi-Watt blue-green source. Q Peak is a company that received a Department of Defense SBIR/STTR grant for a project entitled: Tm:fiber-Based, Reduced Eye-Hazard Laser. The abstract given for this project is as follows: Until recently, gas lasers were the only technology that could provide the powers required for Directed Energy (DE) applications, such as providing area protection to Army forces against rockets, artillery, and mortars. Recent advances in solid state lasers have shown their potential for power scaling to DE levels, and their lack of expendables is major advantage over gas systems. To date, the solid lasers involved have employed either neodymium (Nd)- or ytterbium (Yb)-doped media, either bulk crystals or silica glasses drawn into fibers. All operate in the 1000-1100-nm wavelength region, which, because the wavelengths are invisible but are transmitted to the retina, leads to a significant operational concern about eye safety in real-world uses. Even minimal reflections from targets or debris can exceed the eye-safety limit. Q-Peak has recently developed high-power, efficient, thulium (Tm)-doped, 2000-nm-wavelength fiber lasers that have the potential to scale up to kW power levels. In the work we propose here, we will investigate techniques for fiber-laser beam combination that would further scale the power to DE levels, while maintaining high beam quality. Q Peak is a company that received a Department of Defense SBIR/STTR grant for a project entitled: Cr:ZnSe Ultrafast, High-Power, Mid-IR Source. The abstract given for this project is as follows: Q-Peak proposes to develop a ~100-fs pulse, high-peak-power source based on the combination of an efficient fiber-laser-pumped, Cr:ZnSe master oscillator and a power amplifier. The high-peak-power, femtosecond output pulses at 2.5 microns will be used to pump an optical parametric generator that will convert 2.5-micron radiation into tunable mid-IR between 3 to 5 microns. The technology approach parallels that of Ti:sapphire-laser-based ultrafast systems, but involves operation at mid-IR wavelengths.