Compact visible laser systems based on frequency doubled diodes

Compact, diode based laser sources of visible radiation are of interest for many applications such as printing, optical data storage or optical displays. Most applications. require laser radiation in the red (630 - 640 nm), green (510 - 530 nm) and/or blue (450 - 470 nm) with a power of 0.5 - 2 W in an almost diffraction limited beam. The results obtained so far clearly indicate that frequency doubled, high power master-oscillator power-amplifier (MOPA) systems are powerful sources of blue laser radiation. With InGaAs lasers operating at other wavelengths (such as 1060 nm) this scheme could well be used for the reliable generation of powerful laser light at other (green) wavelengths.