System for evaluation of laser-induced damage performance of optical materials for large aperture lasers

The evaluation of optical components in various laser systems, with regard to their resistance to laser-induced damage, has often relied on measuring damage threshold fluences. For large-aperture laser systems a small amount of damage in optics does not impede performance. This necessitates the development of damage testing instrumentation that can directly provide information regarding beam obscuration. The number and size of damage scattering sites for a specific laser fluence, wavelength, and pulse duration determine overall beam losses due to damage. We present a design for rapid quantitative characterization of bulk damage performance of optical materials for use in large-aperture laser systems. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.