Quick Response, Interactive Modeling Of Optoelectronic Systems

Abstract

The recent availability of high performance, low cost microcomputers with extensive memory and disk storage capacity has made possible the development of sophisticated analysis tools that were previously limited to batch processing on mainframe computers. In this paper, we describe a quick response, interactive wave optics model we have developed for analyzing a wide variety of optoelectronic systems including laser resonators, amplifiers, beam trains, and adaptive optics. The model, as developed for the IBM PC AT, permits interactive or batch system definition, and provides both screen and printed graphical output of the intensity, phase, and power distribution throughout the system. The model provides considerable flexibility to the user in defining the system to be analyzed including initial beam setup, wavelength, system Fresnel number, and component order. The structure of the code is based on the 'lumped equivalent optical train' concept, in which any continuous spatial effect on the optical field, such as mirrors, apertures, and gain medium, is approximated numerically by a finite number of transfer functions on the field. Free space propagation between elements is achieved by using Fast Fourier Transforms. The gain is modeled as a series of gain sheets, where the spatial dependence of the gain is calculated from either a detailed aerokinetic calculation or from a simple threshold gain versus saturated intensity relationship. The model presented here has proven to very useful and accurate for parametric resonator power extraction analysis and design and for determining the effects of various aberrations on system performance. Results from this model are presented and compared with more sophisticated mainframe models along with run time comparisons.