So...you're telling me that if I store my quality laser and use it only a few times a year, it should theoretically last forever? I understand that ALL electronics degrade over time...especially the dielectric components like capacitors. However, you apparently own enough lasers to know the answer. Have any of yours just died while only used a few hours total?
Well, nothing lasts forever...but being facetious aside...if you only ran it once a year, vs once a month, then naturally the lifetime will be in accordance, but not they don't degrade on the shelf. as mentioned by jerry, there are some components that
may go bad like the electrolytics but as a general whole, not usually, and not on any timescale that matters, it'd take years of sitting, and occasional use does help with this problem a lot.
As for random failure-sure. I've had diodes in professional setups die at all clock ticks. I've had some die at very low hours, I've had some last well beyond their rated life. As a matter of fact, I just replaced a diode in one of my melles griot RCS lasers at 570 hours ish! I have others at thousands of hours that are like new. You can predict, but you can never tell for sure just how long they'll last. remember that a laser diode is a high stress device...you're ramming amps of power through something maybe a few tens of microns in size! The paper you reference is a basic article, and I actually have the full version as a paper somewhere. It can be found by googling. lots of factors affect laser diode life, but sitting isn't one of them. I have diodes as old as I am that still work like the day they were made that have sat for tens of years that were never put into service.
Hell, I have power supplies that are from the 60s that still work, and before you ask....NO parts were ever replaced in them. They're all original. In fact my 119 supply, the one in question, is
so old it has tubes in it!
Come on ultimateK, how many of us just in for the hobby seal up are pointers to the extreme? edslittle, asked more of a crystal degrade over time which has been a topic quite a few times, and alot seem to agree as their 532's just aren't performing the same after a long lay off sitting in the box.
There are some threads out there with members opinions.
Now you're just being rude. and yes plenty of us have sealed modules. pretty much any CNI, or professional laser is hermetically sealed for both lifetime, and tampering reasons. That being said, yes some of us DO seal our stuff, and I have done so with many of my DPSS that I've made/repaired, but it's more for protection of the parts than anything. I don't do it with direct diodes, but its not really needed as pointed out. Crystals do not degrade from sitting. A YAG or ruby doesn't change from the day it's made. You can damage it from misuse (optical damage or physical trauma) but simply using it in a proper manner doesn't harm it. KTP, and many other doubling crystals also don't care. There are some select crystals like an LBO that can be damaged from moisture, but they're a seperate case, and usually only used where no other option is available, and are generally used in a sealed environment for this reason.
Your handheld isn't going to decay sitting on the shelf, it just wont happen. and a minor loss of a few milliwatts on something that isn't thermally controlled and has irregular output is hardly conclusive. If the environment isn't appropriate when it starts up, then thermal shock and other things may come into play, but in and of itself, it isn't going to die simply from the act of sitting.
I've heard that UV causes the green plants to grow faster, probably it's suitable for а greenhouse.
