Research Projects

Lasers are crucial for over a trillion dollars of technologies, with increasing requirements for compactness, high spectral purity, good beam quality, and low noise. Rare-earth-doped waveguide lasers, which combine the benefits of free-space laser systems and semiconductor lasers, have been limited in innovation. Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) is a technique used to develop thin films for material science applications, but its spectral regimes are limited to 1 micron and 2 microns. PLD offers flexibility in fabricating single-layer and multi-layer films while keeping costs low. However, there is a significant gap in available PLD-deposited laser systems in terms of wavelength of operation and channel waveguide laser development. This project aims to develop the world's first PLD-deposited waveguide lasers operating in the vital telecom window of 1.5 microns and the visible regime of 400-700 nm. The project will also innovate in waveguide fabrication and demonstrate channel waveguide lasers using PLD for the first time. Pulsed experiments will be performed, and the laser systems will be implemented in optical and wireless communication testbeds to demonstrate real-life applications. The development of these highly-compact laser systems will enable the application of PLD-deposited waveguide lasers for various applications, including communications, medicine, and power-scaling for defense applications. India will be at the forefront of compact laser source development.