Technical Paper Overview
Wide-Range Power Control Without Performance Trade-Offs
Conventional power control forces a choice between output level and laser performance.
Stable optical power, beam size, beam shape and spectral performance are critical requirements for advanced photonic applications, including Raman spectroscopy, semiconductor wafer inspection, particle metrology, and fluorescence imaging. In these systems, laser beam properties directly influence measurement accuracy, signal quality, throughput, and sample integrity. Precise and repeatable power control must therefore be achieved without compromising critical laser characteristics such as amplitude noise, spectral stability, or beam quality.
This white paper introduces Novanta’s latest patent pending innovation in diode-pumped solid-state (DPSS) laser technology, an integrated Variable Optical Attenuator (VOA) incorporated within the company’s advanced GEMultra™ and GEMultra+™ platforms. Unlike conventional power-control methods that rely solely on pump-diode current adjustment, the integrated VOA enables high-resolution output power control while preserving optimum laser output properties.
The GEMultra platform provides continuous attenuation from OD0 to OD2, while the GEMultra+ extends this capability to OD3. Across the wider operating power range, the laser performance remains unchanged, maintaining industry-leading power stability, noise levels, spectral integrity, and beam quality. By integrating attenuation directly within the laser architecture, Novanta eliminates alignment sensitivities associated with external attenuation systems, reduces Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) integration complexity, and lowers overall system costs.
Key takeaways include:
- Delivers industry-leading noise performance across a wide dynamic range – GEMultra maintains <0.1% RMS noise up to OD2 attenuation, while GEMultra+ achieves <0.5% RMS noise up to OD3
- Maintains critical laser characteristics during attenuation
- Simplifies OEM system design and integration
- Integrates seamlessly into the FUSIONultra™ configurable light-engine platform via its compact design
- Reduces system cost and integration risk
- Optimized for advanced industrial and life-science applications
- Ensures stable spectral performance over a wide power range via the integrated VOA
The full technical paper includes measured noise spectra, long-term stability data, spectral and beam-quality results across the attenuation range, and integration detail for the FUSIONultra™ light engine platform.
