Tuneable dye laser systems

Finally, it should be noted that, because of interaction with the crystal host, the Nd energy levels are 

Practical tuneable laser systems are, by and large, based on three different gain media, namely dyes in solution, doped solid-state crystals (mostly Ti sapphire) and light-emitting semiconductor diode materials. Brief descriptions of their basic operation principles and common designs are summarized in 

Dye lasers are the fulfilment of an experimenter s pipe dream that was as old as the laser itself To have a laser that is easily tuneable over a wide range of frequencies or wavelengths (Schafer, 1977). This quotation still has a good degree of validity, although other tuneable laser sources are now challenging the dominance of tuneable dye lasers, which they enjoyed for a number of decades. 

As the name implies, the active medium of dye lasers comprises organic dyes. The way the active medium is presented to the laser is radically different from other types of laser, in that the organic dye is incorporated in a hquid solvent. The dye solution used in dye lasers typically has a concentration in the range 10 2-10 4moll 

Dye lasers are very flexible in their operation. They can be pumped by incoherent fight from a flash lamp (less common today) or by radiation from a laser source. They can be run both pulsed and CW, and they offer a very broad range of wavelengths, with tuning over more than 100 nm for some specific dyes. Laser output of many watts in CW mode is achievable. 

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