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Abstract

An active optical amplifier in which a unitary optical amplifier constructed from a unitary optically transparent chip that has been doped so as to be optically active, amplifies incoming signal photons when excited by a pump laser of sufficient energy. The unitary optical amplifier receives input photons and pump laser energy and provides output photons that have the same spatial orientation and phase as the corresponding input photons. A laser direction and ranging (LADAR) may be constructed from the active optical amplifier by further including first imaging optics to focus the input photons onto the surface of the unitary optical amplifier and second imaging optics to focus the output photons from the active unitary optical amplifier onto a focal plane image sensor array. The electronic signals from the focal plane image sensor array may then be displayed on a conventional display. A plurality of unitary optically transparent amplifier chips are configured in a stacked arrangement, each receiving a pump signal, and the stacked arrangement provides for the amplification of input photons.

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First Claim