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Learn the key parameters that must be considered to ensure you laser application is successful. Common terminology will be established for these parameters.

Overspecifying optical losses in laser systems will not further improve your performance or reliability, but it could cost you additional money and/or time.

Power density, energy density, fluence, and irradiance are often incorrectly used in laser optics applications. Learn the correct definitions and usage.

Check out these best practices for handling and storing high power laser mirrors to decrease the risk of damage and increase lifetimes at Edmund Optics.

Learn why the bulk laser-induced damage threshold (LIDT) of glass is significantly different than the LIDT optical components with coatings, such as AR thin films.

Understanding the polarization of laser light is critical for many applications, as polarization impacts reflectance, focusing the beam, and other key behaviors.

Converting a Gaussian laser beam profile into a flat top beam profile can have numerous benefits including minimized wasted energy and increased feature accuracy.

Understanding the most commonly used laser optics materials will allow for easy navigation of EO’s wide selection of laser optics components.

Laser Induced Damage Threshold describes the maximum quantity of laser radiation an optic can take before damaging. Learn more at Edmund Optics.

The diameter of a laser highly affects an optic’s laser induced damage (LIDT) as beam diameter directly impacts the probability of laser damage.

Want to know more about high-power optical coatings? Find out more about the importance, fabrication, and testing at Edmund Optics.

Laser optics high reflectivity mirrors meet exceptional specifications that Edmund Optics' competitors often fail to meet. Learn more at Edmund Optics.

Understanding the most common laser sources, modes of operation, and gain media provides the context for selecting the proper laser for your specific application.

Compare Coherent Laser specifications with the Edmund Optics selection guide.

Laser induced damage threshold (LIDT) denotes the maximum laser fluence an optical component can withstand with an acceptable amount of risk.

Large diameter aspheric lenses enable high-power optical systems, but several key considerations must be taken into account during their fabrication process.

Laser beam expanders are critical for reducing power density, minimizing beam diameter at a distance, and minimizing focused laser spot size.

Microscopes are used in a variety of fields and applications. To understand how resolving power, magnification, and other aspects work, read more at Edmund Optics.

Learn how to navigate the many available options for shaping the irradiance profile and phase of laser beams to maximize your laser system's performance.

The length of a laser resonator determines the laser’s resonator modes, or the electric field distributions that cause a standing wave in the cavity.

Metrology is critical for ensuring that optical components consistently meet their desired specifications, especially in laser applications.

Many challenges can arise when aligning a laser beam; knowing specific tips and tricks can help simplify the process. Learn more at Edmund Optics.

Lasers can be used for a variety of applications. Learn how lasers work, different elements, and the differences between laser types at Edmund Optics.

Testing laser induced damage threshold (LIDT) is not standardized, so understanding how your optics were tested is critical for predicting performance.

Light is absorbed in optical media through several methods including exciting electrons to higher energy states and converting to thermal energy

Fluorescence imaging systems are composed of three major components, an illumination source, a photo-activated fluorophore sample, and detector.

Beam expanders can be used in reverse to decrease a laser beam's diameter, but divergence will be increased.

Not all optical components are tested for laser-induced damage threshold (LIDT) and testing methods differ, resulting in different types of LIDT specifications.

Surprisingly, intentionally clipping a laser beam going through a higher magnification beam expander can be the optimal solution.