Coherent has released two quasi-CW UV lasers. The Paladin Advanced 355-10000 and Paladin Advanced 355-16000 are mode-locked, frequency tripled, diode pumped, solid state lasers that offer 10W and 16W of power respectively at 355nm (at 80MHz). In addition to high power, the lasers deliver a high quality, TEM00 beam (M2<1.2) with excellent stability and low noise characteristics (<1 per cent rms from 10Hz to 2MHz).
Additionally, both these models offer improved operating efficiency over their lower power predecessors, resulting in a reduced cost per Watt in terms of both purchase price and operating expense. The Paladin Advanced lasers share nearly all of the same mechanical and optical characteristics as the lower power models, which provides a straightforward migration path for system builders looking to take advantage of increased power and efficiency.
The Paladin Advanced lasers are ideal for a variety of applications in microelectronics fabrication, flat panel display manufacturing, solar cell production and bioinstrumentation. The systems are particularly well suited for laser direct imaging of printed circuit boards, where their higher power delivers increased throughput and improved spatial resolution, and also provides users the option of using less sensitive, lower cost photoresists. Similarly, the lasers offer improved throughput for inspection of patterned and non-patterned semiconductor wafers. High UV power also makes them useful for a number of structuring and patterning tasks in flat panel display and solar cell production. In the printing industry, these same characteristics enable direct imaging (computer-to-plate) of flexographic printing plates. In bioinstrumentation applications, the systems can increase the speed of medical diagnostic instruments, such as flow cytometers.