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Research & Innovation Center

For over 30 years, Haas Laser Technologies has contributed to the laser industry with groundbreaking research and technological advancements. Our publications and white papers showcase decades of innovation, R&D, and industry expertise. Explore our work below to see how we continue to push the boundaries of laser engineering.

Publications

Evolution of a real-time laser M2 measurement system

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

29 January 2025
In 2011, the authors introduced a multispot, real-time M2 measurement technology that fulfilled the missing ability of the existing M2 measurement systems to dynamically measure thermal lensing in high-power fiber laser systems. Over the next years, the technology has evolved making the technology of M2 measurement compact, easier to use, and more accurate. The traditional M2 measurement technology, being a time-averaged measurement, is incapable of seeing transient changes in a laser system’...
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Publications

Low loss field-mapped laser beam homogenizer

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

23 October 2008
A new type of laser beam homogenizer has been developed which “field-maps” an illumination by using spherical, cylindrical, axicon or prism optical segments, or in some applications combination of these various elements, and placing the optical segments in a configuration whereby light passing through each optical segment directs the light to overlap at a homogenized plane with the desired shape (rectangle, square, rectangular or circular ring illumination). The geometry of the homogenized fi...
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Publications

Collimated laser homogenizer

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

02 November 2009
A new laser beam homogenizer has been developed which converts a highly spatial coherent, Gaussian laser beam into a collimated, square homogenized field. The optical device converts a laser’s Gaussian input beam through multiplexing and recombination without optical interference and yet is collimated over > 5 meters. Laser beam property variations do not adversely affect the performance of the homogenizer in contrast to phase shifting homogenizers and can be utilized from the laser’s obje...
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Publications

Thermal lensing compensation objective for high power lasers

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

26 September 2010
Athermalization of focusing objectives is a common technique for optimizing imaging systems in infrared where thermal effects are a major concern. The athermalization is generally done within the spectrum of interest and not generally applied to a single wavelength. By applying athermalization techniques to a laser system, a significant reduction in thermal lensing of the laser system can be realized. We describe a passive method minimizing thermal lensing of high power lasers.
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Publications

Thermal lensing measurement of a thermal lens compensation high power laser objective

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

23 October 2011
An effort was under taken to mitigate thermal lensing and have an easy and compact means of monitoring thermal lensing in a high power laser system. Utilizing the negative temperature coefficient of refractive index in CaF2 with the nearly opposing positive temperature coefficient of refractive index in SiO2, a multi-element focusing objective was fabricated to reduce the amount of thermal lensing experienced with a multi-kilowatt, cw fiber laser. In addition, an all-passive optical design be...
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Publications

Focal spot monitoring of a high power fiber laser

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

23 October 2011
A new laser focal spot analyzer system has been developed that permits the real time measurement of a high power fiber laser in excess of tens of kilowatts which can provide the laser’s spatial profile, circularity, centroid, astigmatism and M-squared values using all the optics used in the process application, including the focus lens and cover glass. This novel beam analyzer system is both compact, real time and has no moving parts by incorporating an all passive optical design, thereby acc...
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Publications

All passive optical design laser beam analyzer for high power CO2 lasers

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

23 October 2012
A compact, all passive optical design laser beam analyzer has been developed which can analyze a focused laser beam from a CO2 laser with a wavelength range of 9.4 microns to 10.6 microns and provide real time M-squared, spot size, astigmatism, beam divergence, Rayleigh length and focal position values. The instrument utilizes a special Fabry-Perot resonator and a bolometer sensor which provides a complete beam waist caustic in real time. The unique optical design further incorporates a novel...
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Publications

Non-disruptive, low loss in-line laser beam monitoring system for industrial laser processing

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

06 October 2013
Monitoring both near and far field laser beam parameters is extremely helpful in understanding the quality of a laser process. The measurement of such parameters has not been practical to date due to the required disruption of the process beam in order to make the measurement. A significant quality control enhancement could be realized if one could monitor both near and far field patterns of the laser system during the process if it could be done with minimal loss or alteration of the process...
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Publications

Quantitative study on optics and their alignment in laser material processing systems

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

19 October 2014
Selection of optics and their alignment are too often taken for granted in the design and building of a laser material processing system. Traditionally the “measuring stick” is the process and whether it is working and not necessarily a quantitative value on the spot size and whether it has any aberrations. It is quite possible to have good optics and poor alignment and conversely have poor optics and good alignment and not immediately know that there is a problem at the process. Beam quality...
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Publications

Novel method for measuring beam parameter product and M-square

Michael Scaggs, Gilbert Haas

18 October 2015
The majority of methods available for measuring the M-square or the beam parameter product of a laser employ a time averaging technique based upon the ISO 11146-1 beam metric standard. In the ISO standard five points must be measured within the first Rayleigh range to establish the beam waist and another five points measured beyond the second Rayleigh range to obtain the asymptote from the corresponding hyperbolic fit of the minimum ten data points measured. Other real time, i.e., instantaneo...
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