Trevor
0
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2009
- Messages
- 4,386
- Points
- 113
Viasho VA-II-N-532 1W - Review
I've been saving my 1,000th post for this.
Background
I purchased this laser through Glenn. Frank, the Viasho salesman came to the US for a show and Glenn met up with him and got lasers for several members, including me. When I initially got the laser, it was running in TEM10. I ultimately RMA'd it and it has come back in TEM00.
Specifications from Viasho
Model: VA-II-N-532
Wavelength (nm): 532
Output power (mW): 1000
Transverse mode: TEM00, TEM01
Longitudinal mode: Multi-longitude
Spectral linewidth (nm): <0.1
Polarization: Line polarization
Polarization Ratio: >100:1
Beam Quality (M2 factor): <1.2
Beam divergence, full angle (mrad): <1.2~2.0
Beam diameter at the aperture (mm): 2.0~3.0
Beam roundness: >90%
Power stability(RMS): <5% @8hours
Aperture Position (mm): 20
Dimensions of Laser Head (L×W×H, mm): 180 x 62 x 62.5
Integrated Driver Model: VD-III Series
External Modulation: 5V TTL / 5V Analogue
Modulating Frequence: 30KHz TTL / 10KHz Analogue
Cooling system: TEC
Warm-up time (minutes): <15
Operation Temperature (°C): 18~30
Expected Lifetime (hours): >10000
Warranty Time: 1 year
Host
I've always liked the look of Viasho lab systems better than those made by CNI. They look very formidable; really chunky aluminum with a blower fan sucking heat from the fins on the top. Just plain cool.
The laser head is quite large - when I first unboxed it, unexpectedly so. It's yet another facet that contributes to the formidable look of the laser.
The umbilical uses an HD15 connector.
My only initial gripe with the laser head was that the fins were not straight; with a bit of muscle, I straightened out the bent bits at the front of the head.
With that fixed, the head is quite aesthetically pleasing.
Power Supply
The PSU is about the size of a standard ATX PSU, adjustable from 0.48-4.7A. On the front, there is a screen for readouts. I have it set to display current, but it can also display readouts from two temperature probes in the laser
head. The key switch and interlock can also be found on the front. When I sent the laser back to be worked on, the engineer apparently told Frank that I had not sent the key and interlock back. Right now, I've picked the key switch and have inserted wire into the interlock ports to get the laser to run. Also on the front are the current adjustment dial and on/off switch.
On the back, there is the HD15 connector for the head, a standard IEC socket for mains power, a coaxial connector for modulation signal, a switch to select TTL+, TTL-, or Analog modulation (to run without any modulation, it must be set to TTL-), a switch to select which readout to display on the front (Current, Rt1, Rt2 - though the temperature readouts aren't particularly useful for my purposes), and a cooling fan.
The driver is certainly an impressive piece of engineering - certainly one of the more comprehensive ones I've seen.
Output
Before I sent it back, it was outputting 1.5W in TEM10, and would modehop. Now, it outputs 1.2W in very near-TEM00.
In this graph, I'm warming the laser up slowly, and it begins to stabilize at ~1.2W.
In this graph, the laser has stabilized.
If I turn the current up too fast, the mode will be TEM10, but if I take care to start the laser slowly (over the course of 3-5 minutes) I get a very nice spot with power being quite stable.
Divergence
Measured at the low end of the spec, 1.2mRad. This is quite remarkable for a lab laser. The diameter at the aperture is ~3mm.
Conclusions
This system is amazing. The visibility of the beam is something out of a science fiction movie; from any angle (including perpendicular at a good distance) it is quite visible and even appears almost opaque in dim light or darkness. The burning ability of this laser is incredible. At one point, I had the laser running at ~2.3A and had focused it to try and fiber couple it. I had goggles on, and accidentally gave myself a nasty instantly-cauterized cut. It hurt pretty bad. Nonfocused, it hurts like a bee sting and twinges for hours after exposure.
I highly recommend this system to anyone who wants a really powerful lab setup. I'm really please with Viasho.
-Trevor
I've been saving my 1,000th post for this.
Background
I purchased this laser through Glenn. Frank, the Viasho salesman came to the US for a show and Glenn met up with him and got lasers for several members, including me. When I initially got the laser, it was running in TEM10. I ultimately RMA'd it and it has come back in TEM00.
Specifications from Viasho
Model: VA-II-N-532
Wavelength (nm): 532
Output power (mW): 1000
Transverse mode: TEM00, TEM01
Longitudinal mode: Multi-longitude
Spectral linewidth (nm): <0.1
Polarization: Line polarization
Polarization Ratio: >100:1
Beam Quality (M2 factor): <1.2
Beam divergence, full angle (mrad): <1.2~2.0
Beam diameter at the aperture (mm): 2.0~3.0
Beam roundness: >90%
Power stability(RMS): <5% @8hours
Aperture Position (mm): 20
Dimensions of Laser Head (L×W×H, mm): 180 x 62 x 62.5
Integrated Driver Model: VD-III Series
External Modulation: 5V TTL / 5V Analogue
Modulating Frequence: 30KHz TTL / 10KHz Analogue
Cooling system: TEC
Warm-up time (minutes): <15
Operation Temperature (°C): 18~30
Expected Lifetime (hours): >10000
Warranty Time: 1 year
Host
I've always liked the look of Viasho lab systems better than those made by CNI. They look very formidable; really chunky aluminum with a blower fan sucking heat from the fins on the top. Just plain cool.
The laser head is quite large - when I first unboxed it, unexpectedly so. It's yet another facet that contributes to the formidable look of the laser.
The umbilical uses an HD15 connector.
My only initial gripe with the laser head was that the fins were not straight; with a bit of muscle, I straightened out the bent bits at the front of the head.
With that fixed, the head is quite aesthetically pleasing.
Power Supply
The PSU is about the size of a standard ATX PSU, adjustable from 0.48-4.7A. On the front, there is a screen for readouts. I have it set to display current, but it can also display readouts from two temperature probes in the laser
head. The key switch and interlock can also be found on the front. When I sent the laser back to be worked on, the engineer apparently told Frank that I had not sent the key and interlock back. Right now, I've picked the key switch and have inserted wire into the interlock ports to get the laser to run. Also on the front are the current adjustment dial and on/off switch.
On the back, there is the HD15 connector for the head, a standard IEC socket for mains power, a coaxial connector for modulation signal, a switch to select TTL+, TTL-, or Analog modulation (to run without any modulation, it must be set to TTL-), a switch to select which readout to display on the front (Current, Rt1, Rt2 - though the temperature readouts aren't particularly useful for my purposes), and a cooling fan.
The driver is certainly an impressive piece of engineering - certainly one of the more comprehensive ones I've seen.
Output
Before I sent it back, it was outputting 1.5W in TEM10, and would modehop. Now, it outputs 1.2W in very near-TEM00.
In this graph, I'm warming the laser up slowly, and it begins to stabilize at ~1.2W.
In this graph, the laser has stabilized.
If I turn the current up too fast, the mode will be TEM10, but if I take care to start the laser slowly (over the course of 3-5 minutes) I get a very nice spot with power being quite stable.
Divergence
Measured at the low end of the spec, 1.2mRad. This is quite remarkable for a lab laser. The diameter at the aperture is ~3mm.
Conclusions
This system is amazing. The visibility of the beam is something out of a science fiction movie; from any angle (including perpendicular at a good distance) it is quite visible and even appears almost opaque in dim light or darkness. The burning ability of this laser is incredible. At one point, I had the laser running at ~2.3A and had focused it to try and fiber couple it. I had goggles on, and accidentally gave myself a nasty instantly-cauterized cut. It hurt pretty bad. Nonfocused, it hurts like a bee sting and twinges for hours after exposure.
I highly recommend this system to anyone who wants a really powerful lab setup. I'm really please with Viasho.
-Trevor
Last edited: