Lasers and temperature

[Mattman420]

I think a lot of us ( hopefully) understand what heat can do to a laser. Just out of curiosity what can the cold do to a laser and it's components? I travel for work and it's getting into the single digits at night where I'm staying right now. Thanks!

 

[JLSE]

Cold is a good thing for non-DPSS lasers. One major downside is condensation which
will fog up exposed optics and leave moisture on everything not sealed. Lasers
like 445nm will give more output (safely) and in red lasers can drop the wavelength
a little making the beam slightly more visible. Though the difference is temporary
and possibly not even noticeable.

If the laser is small enough to fit in your pocket close to the body, you can
keep it at perfect temp.

If your laser is green / DPSS, the cold will just drop down the output until it
warms back up, and condensation remains an issue..

 

[Mattman420]

Thank you! I was Noticing a drop in power on my green. Any long term affects? The host is waterproof so Im less worried about condensation.

 

[qumefox]

No long term effects. But most non-TEC'd DPSS lasers are aligned at room temperature and up.. When they get cold, as stated, output is typically lower, if they lase at all.

 

[JLSE]

Thank you! I was Noticing a drop in power on my green. Any long term affects? The host is waterproof so Im less worried about condensation.

With a waterproof laser, you will have less of an issue if any. If the cold cant be
avoided, you can also get a small carry case together and keep a fresh desiccant
pack with it.

Avoid exposing the laser to humid conditions until it has a chance to warm back up.

Another thing you have to watch depending how cold things get, is if you drop
a dpss. They are already prone to alignment issues, but when cold, glue becomes
brittle and may be easier to damage with a small tumble..


:beer:

 

[Pigsnibble]

I can't even watch the darn thread....stuck on wannaburn's signature animation....too much

 

[Mattman420]

Haha true pigsnibble. But thanks again for the info wannaburn. It was important to me and I had some inclination that something was going on

 

[Pigsnibble]

A good point...

I live in Florida and avoiding humidity would be hard. Which explains why I am looking for that premium build that's waterproof.

I could be killed by the Better Business Bureau of Florida for even suggesting this, but in the panhandle, it actually gets down to 20 degrees F. Stunned I'm sure

Good suggestions regarding putting it in a case with a moisture absorbent.

Thanks

 

[Mattman420]

Most Deffinently gonna use that idea too. Living in oklahoma we have extreme humidity in the summer and then in the winter it's cold and even snows sometimes. Why didn't I look that up before I moved here..