Design of diffractive optical elements for high-power laser applications

Abstract

Diffractive optical technology is rapidly becoming an indis- pensable tool for the creation of high-efficiency optical beam-shaping devices within a wide range of industrial and research activities. The high damage thresholds of typical materials used in diffractive optical element fabrication make them highly suited for deployment in high-power laser systems. We present two high-power applications of diffractive optical elements designed using an ultrahigh fidelity, ultrahigh efficiency design technique and demonstrate the advantages, in terms of optical align- ment, that can be achieved by combining the diffractive structures with a multilevel diffractive lens.