Research on the core factors affecting the temperature rise of dichroic mirrors in wavelength beam combination system under high-power CW laser

Abstract

The wavelength beam combination is considered an important method for improving the source power of high-energy laser weapons while maintaining high beam quality. The dichroic mirror is the key component that decisively determines the laser beam quality of the wavelength beam combining system. However, the temperature rise of the dichroic mirror due to continuous high-power laser irradiation can significantly deteriorate the beam quality and decrease the efficiency of the systems. Along these lines, in this work, the factors that influence the temperature rise of the dichroic mirror under high power CW laser were systematically examined. The temperature field equation of the dichroic mirror under transmission and reflection laser was also calculated. The variation of the dichroic mirror temperature by the laser power, laser spot size, diameter, and thickness of substrates, as well as material of substrates and thin-film absorption was simulated. The simulated results were verified by performing experiments on both sapphire and quartz substrates. The transmittance absorption was proved to be the main cause of the temperature rise and the laser power had a linear relationship with the maximum temperature. Interestingly, the temperature decreased with the thermal conductivity and the laser spot size. As a result, the optimization of the substrate size can significantly reduce the temperature of the dichroic mirror. Our work provides valuable insights into the design and increase in performance of dichroic mirrors in the wavelength combination system.