Curved Mirror Cavities
Curved mirrors have lower diffraction losses than plane parallel mirrors.
There are a number of different types of curved mirror laser cavities.
ABCD Matrices
Ray matrices, or ABCD matrices, are convenient forms for describing
the propagation of optical rays through various optical elements.
A sequence of events can be combined by matrix multiplication to
yield a final result e.g., an image of an object in the form of a
single matrix.
1. Propagation from one point to another
/ /
Putting = , =
/
= 1. + .
/ /
= 0. + 1.
In matrix form, this set of equations can be written as
1
/ = /
0 1
Thus, the matrix of translation over a distance →
1
=
0 1
2. Refraction at a plane boundary
Apply Snell’s law.
=
For small θ, ≈ ≈ .
Therefore, roughly, =
or =
Hence = 1. + 0.
/ 1 0
/ / =
= 0. + 0
3. Refraction in a curved boundary
!
" = #$%
! ' '
or
"
r= (
$ )
!
or
"
r= ! $
or = −1 +
"
1 0 1 0
Therefore, / = −1 / That is, = −1
" "
4. Reflection at a curved surface
% $# , +
or - ) + - ( , .'
'
or + /01(! ),.
or /01 , !. -$
Therefore,
/
= 1. + 0. 1 0
/ / = − 1
and = −. + 1. +
We can combine two separate processes to obtain a single matrix.
Example. Consider two thin lenses of focal lengths 4 and 4 placed
adjacent to each other no effective distance between them.
Propagation through both the lenses can be described as
1 0 1 0
/ = − 1 − 1 /
+ +
Combining and simplifying the two matrices
1 0
/ = − $ 1 /
+ +
ABCD designations → A = 1, B = 0, C=− .
$. , D = 1.
Cavity Stability Criterion
Consider a cavity composed of two
mirrors of equal curvature R and
focal length f = R/2, separate by a
distance d on the axis.
It is easier to visualise the equivalent
situation in which lenses of
equivalent focal length replace the
mirrors.
Propagation of a ray over a distance of one pass through the cavity and then
reflected by the mirror [Fig. (a)]
Equivalent to
An axial displacement d and then a refraction due to the lens [Fig. (b)].
/
Propagation matrix operates on and first, then followed by refraction matrix
1 0 1 1
/ = − 1 0 / = / …(1)
. 1 −. 1 − 5.
67 >68 and 97 >98 → the beam will be on a diverging path that would lead to
instability after many passes
67 <68 and 97 <98 → the beam would converge to the optic axis, tending
towards stability
/ /
Consider that the ray ( , ) differs from the ray ( , ) by only a constant
factor λ.
/ =: / …(2)
For such a solution, the ray would be
diverging for λ>1, since in that case > and > ;
converging for λ<1, since in that case < and < .
With the relevant ABCD matrix, (2) becomes
/ = / =: / …(3)
The two right hand parts can be combined to give
−:
/ =0 …(4)
−:
This is a characteristic eigenvalue equation that will be satisfied only if
the determinant of the coefficients of the matrix is zero.
−:
=0 …(5)
−:
Using the relevant ABCD matrix for the laser cavity with two curved
mirrors as given in Eq. (1),
1−:
−. 1 − 5. − : = 0 …(6)
Solving the determinant leads to the eigenvalue equation
5
: − 2: 1 − .
+ 1 = 0, …(7)
which is an equation of the form
: − 2<: + 1 = 0, …(8)
where < = 1 − 5.
The real solution for : occurs for < > 1.
?
: = < ± < − 1 = @ ±A , < >1 …(9)
The imaginary solution for : occurs for < < 1.
?
:=<± 1 − < = @ ±CA , < <1 …(10)
We have expressed the imaginary solution as @ ±A . D is a real number in
both cases.
What happens to the ray after it makes N passes through the cavity?
The answer requires N successive approximations of Eq. (2).
E
/ = :E / …(11)
E
For the solution of Eq. (9) for < > 1, for N passes
E
/ = :E / = @ ±EA / …(12)
E
which would clearly diverge for large N, leading to an unstable cavity
situation.
For < < 1 for N passes,
E
/ = :E / = @ ±CEA / …(13)
E
The trajectory would clearly converge.
The requirement of stability, therefore, is < < 1.
G
F F
: = 1− + ± 1− 1− +
⁄
5 5 5
=1− .
± .
1− H.
…(14)
For : to remain imaginary,
5
1JH.
or 0< < 44
or 0< < 2L …(15)
The necessary and sufficient condition
for D to be real →
< ≤1 …(16)
The requirement for stability, thus, is
0 ≤ < < ≤1
or 0 ≤ 1 − N5 1 − N5 ≤1 …(17)
The shaded region corresponds to
stable resonator configurations.
