title: Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor measurement for dynamic temperature profiles in heat-capacity laser rods.
abstract: A Shack-Hartmann sensor nonintrusive measurement for the temperature profile in a heat-capacity neodymium-doped glass rod is proposed. This technique is possible because the optical path length of the rod changes with temperature linearly over a wide range. The temperature change of the solid-state laser rod is often recorded by using a thermocouple, thermal camera, or phase-shifting interferometer. Based on an analysis of temperature-induced changes in length and index of refraction, we can get the temperature profiles from the wavefront reconstructions in real time. The results suggest the Shack-Hartmann sensors could replace microbolometer-based thermal cameras and phase-shifting interferometers for dynamic temperature profiles in heat-capacity laser rods with particular advantages. A strange temperature chaos of the Nd:glass rod just after the pump cycle is discovered.
authors.affiliation: Department 203, Optoelectronic Science and Engineering College, National University of Defense Technology,Changsha, 410073, China. xiaobowang1982@yahoo.com.cn
authors.forename: Xiaobo
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xiaojun
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Qisheng
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Fengjie
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Xi