Avoid fiber damage! Control laser material interactions! Now laser pulse duration, as well as energy and wavelength, can be continuously varied. Full pulse energy is delivered at reduced peak power.

The LAI 101 PAL-PSTR Pulse Stretcher provides, quite literally, a new dimension in laser performance. Laser pulse duration, as well as pulse energy and wavelength, can now be continuously controlled. This permits laser peak power to be fixed as pulse energy is varied, or conversely, peak power to be varied at nearly constant pulse energy. Pulse duration can be continuously varied over the very important range from about 100 nsec to several microseconds. Using these stretched pulses, optical fiber energy damage thresholds are dramatically enhanced in both the PAL™ fundamental (720-800 nm) and second harmonic (360-400 nm) spectral regions. The fundamental wavelengths are well suited for studies of optical fiber transmission and loss, optical damage, nonlinear optical processes, and for medical research and applications including lithotripsy and laser tissue interactions. The shorter, UV wavelengths are of potential importance in photolithography, photochemistry, and medical applications such as dentistry, angioplasty, and general surgery. The LAI 101 PAL-PSTR provides a fiber optic deliverable near UV source with an average power approaching 0.5 watts.