A wavelength following system based on tunable optical filter

Abstract

The present invention discloses a wavelength-following system based on a tunable optical filter. The system comprises a laser wavelength monitoring module for real-time monitoring of the first center wavelength of the laser output and its variations; a filter wavelength-following module for controlling the filter window of the tunable filter so that the second center wavelength of the filter window synchronously follows the first center wavelength. A spectrometer connected to the tunable filter is used to observe the spectrum of the laser as the operating temperature changes. This system can solve the problem of the center wavelength of the laser output drifting with changes in operating temperature, achieve system self-calibration, and improve system testing accuracy.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of laser wavelength and wavelength following, and in particular relates to a wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter. Background Art

[0002] The advent of the intelligent era has been accompanied by rapid developments in optoelectronics technology, with semiconductor laser research and development being particularly significant. These lasers, with their unique advantages such as a wide tunable wavelength range, compact size, light weight, long lifespan, high portability, and ease of use, demonstrate broad application potential across a wide range of fields. Specifically, in the military, semiconductor lasers are used in key technologies such as lidar, laser guidance systems, and laser ranging. At the industrial level, they support laser printers, optical information processing, and spectral analysis. In the medical field, they play an indispensable role in laser surgery, laser dynamics therapy, and life science research. Furthermore, fiber optic sensing technology has demonstrated its irreplaceable importance in bridge fault detection and oil and gas pipeline monitoring.

[0003] While semiconductor lasers have shown tremendous potential in numerous fields, their performance stability remains a key issue that needs to be addressed. As highly efficient electron-to-photon conversion devices, semiconductor lasers have very high quantum efficiency, but they are also extremely sensitive to operating temperature. Even small temperature fluctuations are sufficient to cause significant changes in the output light power and wavelength, which in turn directly affect the laser's output characteristics. Therefore, achieving precise control of these output characteristics has become a major challenge in maximizing the advantages of semiconductor lasers. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention proposes a wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter to solve the above problems in the prior art.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, in a first aspect, the present invention provides a wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter, comprising:

[0006] A laser wavelength monitoring module is used to monitor the first central wavelength of the laser output and its changes in real time;

[0007] The filter wavelength following module is used to control the filter window of the tunable optical filter so that the second center wavelength of the filter window synchronously follows the first center wavelength, and observe the spectrum of the laser moving with the change of operating temperature through a spectrometer connected to the tunable optical filter.

[0008] Preferably, the laser wavelength monitoring module includes a first laser, a second laser, a temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module, an ADC module, and a single-chip microcomputer;

[0009] Wherein, both ends of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser are connected to the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module, the output end of the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module is connected to the input end of the ADC module, and the output end of the ADC module is connected to the single-chip microcomputer;

[0010] Two ends of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the second laser are connected to the first laser.

[0011] Preferably, the filter wavelength following module includes a power supply module and a DAC module;

[0012] The single chip microcomputer is connected to the input end of the DAC module, the output end of the DAC module is connected to the input end of the power module, and the output end of the power module is connected to the electrical input end of the tunable optical filter;

[0013] The output end of the first laser is connected to the optical input end of the tunable optical filter, and the optical output end of the tunable optical filter is connected to the input end of the spectrometer.

[0014] In a second aspect, the present invention further provides a method for using a wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter, the method comprising the following steps:

[0015] The laser wavelength monitoring module's single chip microcomputer outputs the laser's thermistor resistance value;

[0016] The second laser provides the missing temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser, and the driving stage drives the first laser to output laser light; based on the resistance value of the temperature-sensitive resistor, the single-chip microcomputer calculates the first center wavelength value of the laser output by the first laser;

[0017] By means of the filter wavelength following module, the second center wavelength value is matched one-to-one with the first center wavelength value;

[0018] The single chip microcomputer calculates voltage information provided by the DAC module to the power module, and controls the filtering window of the tunable optical filter according to the voltage information, so that the second center wavelength value changes in accordance with the change of the first center wavelength value;

[0019] The spectrum of the laser output by the first laser is observed by a spectrometer.

[0020] Preferably, by adjusting the operating temperature of the first laser, the spectrum of the spectrometer is shifted left and right as the operating temperature changes.

[0021] Preferably, the method further comprises: adjusting the input voltage value of the tunable optical filter, observing the second central wavelength value through a spectrometer, and establishing a curve of the input voltage of the tunable optical filter and the second central wavelength value.

[0022] In a third aspect, the present invention further discloses a computer device comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory, wherein the processor executes the computer program to implement the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0023] In a fourth aspect, the present invention further discloses a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, which implements the steps of the method described in the second aspect when executed by a processor.

[0024] In a fifth aspect, the present invention further discloses a computer program product, comprising a computer program, which implements the steps of the method described in the second aspect when executed by a processor.

[0025] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following advantages and technical effects:

[0026] The present invention provides a wavelength following system based on an adjustable optical filter, comprising: a laser wavelength monitoring module for real-time monitoring of the first central wavelength of laser output and its changes; a filter wavelength following module for controlling a filter window of the adjustable optical filter so that the second central wavelength of the filter window synchronously follows the first central wavelength, and observing a spectrum graph of the laser moving as the operating temperature changes through a spectrometer connected to the adjustable optical filter.

[0027] The present invention can solve the problem of the center wavelength of the laser output drifting with the change of operating temperature, achieve the purpose of system self-calibration, and improve the test accuracy of the system. In addition, the present invention does not need to destroy the structure of the laser itself, and can realize adaptive wavelength tracking through the single chip microcomputer with an accuracy of up to 10 -5 nm order of magnitude. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] The accompanying drawings, which constitute part of this application, are intended to provide a further understanding of this application. The exemplary embodiments and descriptions of this application are intended to explain this application and do not constitute an improper limitation on this application. In the accompanying drawings:

[0029] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Among them, 1. the first laser; 2. the second laser; 3. the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module; 4. the ADC module; 5. the single-chip microcomputer; 6. the tunable optical filter; 7. the power module; 8. the DAC module; 9. the spectrometer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] It should be noted that, in the absence of conflict, the embodiments and features of the embodiments in this application can be combined with each other. The present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and in combination with the embodiments.

[0032] It should be noted that the steps shown in the flowcharts of the accompanying drawings can be executed in a computer system such as a set of computer-executable instructions, and that, although a logical order is shown in the flowcharts, in some cases, the steps shown or described can be executed in an order different from that shown here.

[0033] Example 1

[0034] like Figure 1 As shown, this embodiment provides a wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter, including:

[0035] Laser wavelength monitoring module, used to monitor the central wavelength of the laser output and its changes in real time;

[0036] Among them, the laser wavelength monitoring module includes a first laser 1, a second laser 2, a temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module 3, an ADC module 4, and a single-chip microcomputer 5;

[0037] Specifically, both ends of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser 1 are connected to the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module 3; the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module 3 is connected to the ADC module 4; the output end of the ADC module 4 is connected to the single-chip microcomputer 5; the resistance value of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser 1 is obtained through the single-chip microcomputer 5;

[0038] Connect the two ends of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the second laser 2 to the first laser 1, place it on the laser driving platform, and drive the first laser 1 to output laser; through the program design of the single-chip microcomputer 5, based on the resistance value of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser 1, the central wavelength value of the laser output by the first laser 1 is calculated.

[0039] The filter wavelength following module is used to control the filter window of the tunable optical filter to follow the fluctuation of the laser output with high precision and synchronization.

[0040] Wherein, the filter wavelength following module includes a power supply module 7 and a DAC module 8;

[0041] Specifically, the single-chip microcomputer 5 is connected to the input end of the DAC module 8; the output end of the DAC module 8 is connected to the input end of the power module 7; the output end of the power module 7 is connected to the electrical input end of the tunable optical filter 6; the optical input end of the tunable optical filter 6 is connected to the laser output end of the first laser 1; and the optical output end of the tunable optical filter 6 is connected to the input end of the spectrometer 9.

[0042] In this embodiment, the center wavelength of the filter window of the tunable optical filter 6 is aligned with the wavelength of the laser light output by the first laser 1. Through programming within the single-chip computer 5, the voltage information that the DAC module 8 needs to provide to the power module 7 is calculated. This allows the filter window of the tunable optical filter 6 to change in accordance with the laser light output by the first laser 1. The experimental results are then observed and verified using a spectrometer 9.

[0043] Example 2

[0044] Based on the same inventive concept, this embodiment further provides a method for using a wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter, the method comprising the following steps:

[0045] The laser wavelength monitoring module's single chip microcomputer outputs the laser's thermistor resistance value;

[0046] The second laser provides the missing temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser, and the driving stage drives the first laser to output laser light; based on the resistance value of the temperature-sensitive resistor, the single-chip microcomputer calculates the first center wavelength value of the laser output by the first laser;

[0047] By means of the filter wavelength following module, the second center wavelength value is matched one-to-one with the first center wavelength value;

[0048] The single chip microcomputer calculates voltage information provided by the DAC module to the power module, and controls the filtering window of the tunable optical filter according to the voltage information, so that the second center wavelength value changes in accordance with the change of the first center wavelength value;

[0049] The spectrum of the laser output by the first laser is observed by a spectrometer.

[0050] In this embodiment, the method of use specifically includes:

[0051] Step 1: Isolate the temperature sensitive resistor of the first laser 1;

[0052] Step 2: Connect the two ends of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser 1 and the second laser 2;

[0053] Step 3: Place the first laser 1 on the laser drive platform and set the laser output center wavelength to λ L ;

[0054] Step 4: Connect the first laser 1 temperature-sensitive resistor to the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module 3 to obtain the first laser 1 temperature-sensitive resistor resistance R t ;

[0055] Step 5: Connect the output end of the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module 3 to the input end of the ADC module 4;

[0056] Step 6: Connect the output terminal of the ADC module 4 to the microcontroller 5;

[0057] Step 7: Transmit the resistance data of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser 1 to the single-chip microcomputer 5 through the ADC module 4;

[0058] Step 8: Use a multimeter to connect the two sides of the thermistor of the first laser 1, adjust the temperature, measure the resistance of the thermistor, and establish a curve of the resistance and temperature of the thermistor of the first laser 1;

[0059] Step 9: The single chip microcomputer 5 controls the software algorithm to obtain the current operating temperature of the first laser 1 according to the curve of the resistance value and temperature of the thermistor of the first laser 1, which is recorded as T;

[0060] Step 9: Connect the light output end of the first laser 1 to the input end of the spectrometer 9;

[0061] Step 10: Adjust the operating temperature of the first laser 1, and the spectrometer 9 observes the central wavelength of the laser output by the first laser 1, and establishes a curve of the operating temperature and the output laser wavelength of the first laser 1;

[0062] Step 11: The single chip microcomputer 5 controls the software algorithm, and obtains the current center wavelength value of the laser output by the first laser 1 according to the curve of the operating temperature and output laser wavelength of the first laser 1 in step 10, which is recorded as λ L’ ;

[0063] Step 12: Assume that the center wavelength of the filter window of the tunable optical filter 6 is λ F , let λ F The same as the central wavelength of the first laser 1, that is, λ F =λ L’ ;

[0064] Step 13: Connect the light output end of the tunable optical filter 6 to the input end of the spectrometer 9;

[0065] Step 14: providing a light source for the tunable optical filter 6, adjusting the input voltage value of the tunable optical filter 6, and using the spectrometer 9 to observe the center wavelength of the filter window of the tunable optical filter 6, and establishing a curve of the input voltage of the tunable optical filter 6 and the center wavelength of the filter window;

[0066] Step 15: The single chip microcomputer 5 controls the software algorithm to obtain the voltage value U that needs to be provided to the filter based on the curve of the output voltage of the tunable optical filter 6 and the center wavelength of the filter window in step 14;

[0067] Step 16: Connect a multimeter to the output terminal of the power module 7, adjust the input voltage value of the power module 7, and establish a curve of the input and output voltages of the power module 7;

[0068] Step 17: The single chip microcomputer 5 controls the software algorithm to obtain the input signal U' required to be provided to the power module 7 according to the curve of the input and output voltages of the power module 7 in step 16;

[0069] Step 18: Connect the microcontroller 5 to the input terminal of the DAC module 8;

[0070] Step 19: Connect the output terminal of the DAC module 8 to the input terminal of the power module 7;

[0071] Step 20: Connect the output end of the power module 7 to the voltage input end of the tunable optical filter 6;

[0072] Step 21: Connect the optical output end of the first laser 1 to the optical input end of the tunable optical filter 6;

[0073] Step 22: According to steps 8 to 17, the single chip microcomputer 5 controls the software algorithm to enable the power module 7 to provide input voltage to the tunable optical filter 6;

[0074] Step 23: Connect the light output end of the tunable optical filter 6 to the input end of the spectrometer 9;

[0075] Step 24: Observe the spectrum of the laser light outputted by the first laser 1 through the tunable optical filter 6 through the spectrometer 9;

[0076] Step 25: Adjust the operating temperature of the first laser 1 by heating or cooling it. It can be observed that the spectrum on the spectrometer 9 shifts left and right as the temperature changes, while the optical power value does not change dramatically.

[0077] The method for using the wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter provided in this embodiment has all the advantages of the wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter provided in the first embodiment.

[0078] Example 3

[0079] This embodiment further discloses a computer device, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory, wherein the processor executes the computer program to implement the steps of the method described in the second embodiment.

[0080] Example 4

[0081] This embodiment further discloses a computer-readable storage medium on which a computer program is stored. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the method described in the second embodiment are implemented.

[0082] Example 5

[0083] This embodiment further discloses a computer program product, including a computer program. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the method described in the second embodiment are implemented.

[0084] The above are merely preferred embodiments of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included in the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter, characterized in that: include: A laser wavelength monitoring module is used to monitor the first central wavelength value of the laser output and its changes in real time; The laser wavelength monitoring module includes a first laser, a second laser, a temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module, an ADC module, and a single-chip microcomputer; Wherein, both ends of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser are connected to the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module, the output end of the temperature-sensitive resistor monitoring module is connected to the input end of the ADC module, and the output end of the ADC module is connected to the single-chip microcomputer; Two ends of the temperature-sensitive resistor of the second laser are connected to the first laser; a filter wavelength following module, configured to control a filter window of a tunable optical filter so that a second center wavelength value of the filter window synchronously follows the first center wavelength value, and observe a spectrum graph of the laser moving as the operating temperature changes through a spectrometer connected to the tunable optical filter; Wherein, the laser wavelength monitoring module is connected to the filter wavelength following module; The filter wavelength following module includes a power supply module and a DAC module; The single chip microcomputer is connected to the input end of the DAC module, the output end of the DAC module is connected to the input end of the power module, and the output end of the power module is connected to the electrical input end of the tunable optical filter; The output end of the first laser is connected to the optical input end of the tunable optical filter, and the optical output end of the tunable optical filter is connected to the input end of the spectrometer.

2. A method for using a wavelength following system based on a tunable optical filter, characterized in that: Based on the wavelength following system based on the tunable optical filter according to claim 1, the method of using the system comprises the following steps: The laser wavelength monitoring module's single chip microcomputer outputs the laser's thermistor resistance value; The second laser provides the missing temperature-sensitive resistor of the first laser, and the driving stage drives the first laser to output laser light; based on the resistance value of the temperature-sensitive resistor, the single-chip microcomputer calculates the first center wavelength value of the laser output by the first laser; By means of the filter wavelength following module, the second center wavelength value is matched one-to-one with the first center wavelength value; The single chip microcomputer calculates voltage information provided by the DAC module to the power module, and controls the filtering window of the tunable optical filter according to the voltage information, so that the second center wavelength value changes in accordance with the change of the first center wavelength value; The spectrum of the laser output by the first laser is observed by a spectrometer.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that By adjusting the operating temperature of the first laser, the spectrum of the spectrometer is shifted left and right as the operating temperature changes.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that Also includes: The input voltage value of the tunable optical filter is adjusted, the second central wavelength value is observed through a spectrometer, and a curve of the input voltage of the tunable optical filter and the second central wavelength value is established.

5. A computer device comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory, wherein: The processor executes the computer program to implement the steps of the method according to any one of claims 2 to 4.

6. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that: When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the method according to any one of claims 2 to 4 are implemented.

7. A computer program product comprising a computer program, characterized in that When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the method according to any one of claims 2 to 4 are implemented.

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