Scatter

[stefanazar]

Is there any such thing as a perfectly scatter free beam?

Possibly Im looking for perfection here but I just received a replacement of a laser sent back because I felt there was an unreasonable amount of scatter close to and around the beam. The replacement is ALMOST perfect but in my anal way, I can still see a small amount of irregular scatter.

 

[Jaseth]

A well aligned module with a good, clean lens makes for a scatter free beam. Scatter usually comes from dust, dirt or scratches on the lens, a misaligned module making the beam hit the aperture, or mode hopping leading to a larger beam, again hitting the aperture.
If you keep a dust cap on your laser whenever you are not using it, an occasionally clean the lens well (I suggest this for cleaning) a good quality laser should remain scatter free.
I only accept lasers with noticeable scatter if they are from cheap, low quality companies, meaning I had expected it.

Seb

 

[mfo]

This is the welcome section.

 

[Greenmechanic]

Welcome to the forum.
Unless you spend lots of $$, or get a gas laser, you are always going to have a little scatter.
But if you can't notice it easily, the one you have is probably the best you can expect.
If you are still not happy with the beam, you can always buy a He-Ne-gas laser. (plus, I think they are way cooler then diode or DPSS lasers)
Here's a picture of the He-Ne lamp I made. You can't get that kind of beauty (or beam quality) from a diode.