Acousto-optic deflector of depolarized laser radiation

Abstract

An original acousto-optic deflector is based on the anisotropic diffraction in the paratellurite crystal. The deflector is characterized by a relatively high diffraction efficiency for depolarized laser radiation. The deflector consists of two sequential acousto-optic cells. Each cell deflects one of the orthogonally polarized components of the originally depolarized radiation. The first and second cells scan the low- and highfrequency parts of the angular interval, respectively. The simultaneous and independent operation of the cells makes it possible to use the entire optical (laser) power. A frequency band of 32 MHz is almost reached for depolarized radiation with a wavelength of 1.06 µm and the absolute angular interval is 50 mrad at a total efficiency of no less than 70%.