Characterisation and assessment of a broadband tunable Ti:Sapphire laser for use in C.A.R.S. spectroscopy

This thesis deals specifically with the operation of the Ti:Sapphire laser. The laser was obtained from BMI Industries in a kit form. The component parameters were first determined to use in theoretical models of the laser's operation. The laser was then assembled and optimized in order to get the most efficient output. Runs of shots were recorded at various tuned wavelengths and energies. This allowed accurate comparisons with the models and assessment of the practicability of use of the laser as the Stokes beam in a CARS system. The shot-to-shot noise was also measured and an attempt made to identify the major sources of this noise. Finally a comparison of the noise values for the Ti:Sapphire laser was made with the values for the dye laser presently used in CARS.

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Department of Physics

Year dc:date.issued

1996

Author dc:creator

• Anderson, Jonathan Ashcraft

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Driver, H S T

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/17517

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/17517