Direct measurement of laser power through a high numerical aperture oil immersion objective lens using a solid immersion lens

Abstract

For many laser applications, information on irradiated laser power is important. However, direct measurement of laser power through a high numerical aperture objective lens is difficult in a laser microscope. In this article, we propose a method which use a solid immersion lens (SIL) for such measurements. A laser beam focused by an objective lens is introduced to the flat surface of a SIL, emitted through the spherical surface, and then detected. In this way the divergence of the laser beam is reduced, and as a result the detection efficiency of the laser power increases. From theoretical analysis, a Weierstrass-sphere type SIL was found to be an appropriate thickness for this propose. Transmittance of the SIL is evaluated for several refractive indeces. The validity of this method is confirmed experimentally.