Z-fold links?

Thx. I was just gonna ask if you had any pics. I can see now whats all going down.

So i already have
HIGH POWER Nd:YAG LASER PULSE or CW OC and HR OPTIC SET - eBay (item 250449706316 end time Jun-22-09 09:11:50 PDT)

so would
DPSS LASER HR MIRROR for 808nm 40W LASER DIODE COHERENT - eBay (item 250454643909 end time Jul-05-09 19:48:28 PDT)

be a good buy for the other 2 HR's?

Sorry, but I think you are missing the point here. I don't mean to be rude, but you have no idea what you are doing. You need to learn some about basic laser theory and cavity design. Additionally, you need to learn that you can't just put random mirrors in a cavity.

Come back after you read up on cavity design and laser theory.

I would recommend you read up on this books:
Laser Fundamentals - Google Books

I know. That's why im here to learn.

I think what Ben was trying to say, is that you should always learn to crawl before you walk. Buy a small bonded crystal set and shine some 808 into it, you'll get green very easily.

The next step you should take is to buy a little piece of Nd:YVO4 (with built in HR mirror on coating of crystal) and a KTP along with an output coupler and see if you can get green. This type of setup can take you all the way up to 1W with a lot of pump power. Then you should buy a YAG coated for 473, as well as a LBO coated for 473, and see if you can get a linear cavity blue laser working. From there, try a V cavity, then a Z cavity with a tiny yag rod, and if you get all that stuff working you'll be ready for the bi-axially pumped ring cavity.

Learning is what we are all here for, just sometimes you have to see how everything works in front of you, and you'll learn way more than anyone can explain to you.

chaosfourever said:

Here is what I have so far
HIGH POWER 10 W GREEN YAG Nd:YVO4 VLOC LASER X-tal - eBay (item 290323307381 end time Jun-15-09 00:01:11 PDT)

HIGH POWER Nd:YAG LASER PULSE or CW OC and HR OPTIC SET - eBay (item 250449706316 end time Jun-22-09 09:11:50 PDT)

HIGH POWER YAG LASER HGTR KTP GREEN SHG 532 CRYSTAL NIB on eBid.net United States

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121$ for a set of mirrors that you don't know the specs is not a good idea.
CW or PULSED? That sounds wrong, the transmittance % is different for pulsed and CW.
For CW you want the OC to be around 80-90% reflective. For pulsed it's a lot lower.

Well I got the three things list, but I do have some lower watt diodes of 808nm which I could test with a dpm to make a smaller green. I aim for the top too much lol.

chaosfourever said:

I aim for the top too much lol.

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Nothing wrong with that!!! I do the exact same thing. I have a habit of aiming way over my head, and dont listen to people when they try to say 'start at the beginning". Then I end up trying for the top and end up wasting a lot of money, just to start back at the bottom again :beer::beer:

Trust me, the first time you get a flash of green out of a laser with two separate crystals, a pump diode, and an output coupler, you'll be ecstatic and not care how much power it's making. Just the fact that it works will be a triumph!!

GooeyGus said:

you'll be ecstatic and not care how much power it's making.

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Yes. For five minutes. Then, you'll spend countless hours chasing power and stability (which will only be acceptable if they occur simultaneously) and you'll settle for nothing less than absolutely as close as you can get. (note the abstractness.. it's the fuel that will power the demise of the rest of your life..)

well good on you chaos for giving such a complex project a go.

Another point is that if you separate the beampath of the green from the beampath of the IR with a prism or the like, then you can use a HR mirror without the green transmission for the IR and mixed beampaths, and leave the green beampath as-is. Alternately, the green beampath can encounter a partial reflector, which increases the circulating power threshold but also increases the conversion efficiency due to the higher flux. In such a design, the use of two short KTP crystals at 90 degrees to each other is necessary to limit walkoff (or one can use LBO with NCPM, which has zero walkoff).

Once I find another reasonably priced 20W pump, I'm resuming work on my YAG + LBO laser. Apart from the insane expense (from a hobby perspective) of a high power pump diode, the main challenge has been the mechanics, actually. Aligning, mounting, cooling. Most of the people who will do machining back out once they hear the word "cavity."