Laser and Rare Earth

Since the emergence of lasers in rubies in the 1960s, in the same year, calcium fluoride (CaF2:Sm2+) was found to output pulsed lasers. In the second year, pulsed lasers were obtained in ytterbium-doped silicate glass. The rare earth has formed an indissoluble bond. Rare earths have many properties such as magnetism, light, electricity, superconductivity and catalysis. They are one of the most important materials in this century. They are widely used in many fields. As a non-renewable resource like oil, they are valued by many countries. Strategic resources.

Since the rare earth was bonded to the laser, the utilization of rare earth in the laser has been deepened. In 1962, the CaWO4:Nd3+ crystal was used to output the continuous laser. In 1963, the rare earth chelate liquid laser material was firstly developed, and the erbium-doped benzoylacetone was used. The pulsed laser was obtained from the alcohol solution. In 1964, the ytterbium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet crystal (Y3Al5O12: Nd3+) which could output a continuous laser at room temperature was found, and finally the two widely used solid laser materials were produced. Of course, the fate of rare earth and laser is far more than this. In 1973, the laser oscillation of rare earth metal vapor of cerium-lanthanum was realized for the first time. In just ten years, the rare earth solid, liquid and gaseous states achieved stimulated emission, making rare earth Important materials in the field of laser applications have also become an indispensable element of lasers.

Rare earth materials are the heart of today's laser applications and are now the basis for laser technology applications. The connection between the two makes the current laser application technology widely used in military, communication, medical material processing, information storage, scientific research, testing, and anti-counterfeiting, making laser application technology now into many aspects of production and life. Like the laser in the current fiber laser marking machine, the rare earth is used as the gain medium. Therefore, under the action of the pump light, the high power density is easily formed in the fiber, which causes the laser energy level of the laser working substance to “reverse the number of particles”. A laser oscillation output can be formed by appropriately adding a positive feedback loop (constituting a resonant cavity). It has the characteristics of good beam quality, small size, fast speed, long working life, flexible installation and maintenance-free. At the same time, it has stable performance, small size, low power consumption, no high voltage, no huge water cooling system (only about 300W), high beam quality, close to the ideal beam. Can be integrated circuit chips, computer accessories, industrial bearings, watches and clocks, electronic and communications products, aerospace equipment, various automotive parts, home appliances, hardware tools, molds, wire and cable, food packaging, jewelry, tobacco and military affairs, and many other fields. Graphics and text are fine-grained, and you can also mass-produce line jobs. With the rapid development of laser technology, rare earths as "industrial vitamins" will be more closely used in the field of laser applications.