How should i measure the peak power of a diode laser pumped transmitter ?
Hi @NecTech
You’ve not given us much context. To clarify, are you asking about measuring the optical output power of an xTool diode laser module?
If so, LightBurn does not measure the actual laser output power. The power percentage in LightBurn is only a control value sent to the machine; it is not a measured wattage but a percentage of the total available from the module.
To measure real output power, you would need a suitable laser power meter rated for your laser’s wavelength and power range. Frankly its a specialised bit of kit, though you can sort of make your own with a block of anodised aluminium and a thermometer and a known good laser source or a calibrated meter to compare with.
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Diode blue light lasers are not pumped. A DC voltage is applied and they lase as long as the DC is applied.
Diode Pumped Laser would only apply to the Fiber lasers. Is this what you are talking about?
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How do you modulate a pulsed laser?
Do you have some type of device or schematic we can reference?
Firstly, thank you for replying and I’ll try to be more informative on what im working and why i want to measure the peak power. So, I’ve a Pulsed laser diode whose wavelenght is 905nm. I’m interested to learn about laser which are used in rangefinders.
You can measure the average power with a meter designed for low-power diode lasers, similar to this one.
Measuring peak power requires a photodiode calibrated for the laser wavelength and expected power, along with an oscilloscope or specialized (“expensive”) optical laboratory equipment.
You can put an upper bound on the optical power by working through the relevant regulations and classifications:
A casual search brings up this informative chart:
I assume it’s not modulated.
What do you foresee as a receiver? You have to be able to receive the reflected beam.
I don’t know much about these, although I have one somewhere around that I used to use when I was hunting.
Is this a pump diode from a fiber system or?
Yes, I was able to receive it with a simple photodiode circuit .
Can you tell me what kind of specialized optical laboratory equipment is required? Can you name a few of them?
No, I’m talking about a diode-pumped solid-state (DPSS) laser transmitter which is basically used in LiDAR systems.
A casual search on the obvious terms will provide plenty of choices, limited only by your budget.
This discussion seems far afield in a forum intended for LightBurn’s software, so I’ll step aside in deference to folks with more current knowledge than my decades-old experience.
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Haha! I would have been much less diplomatic. Perfectly said!
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I agree. Since this seems to be a general question about rangefinder hardware, I’ll move it into the community section.
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I completely understand and appreciate your perspective,the insights you’ve shared so far have been very helpful. I’ll take your advice and do some more targeted research on the current options. Thanks again for your time.
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