The new Firestar i401 laser provides 400 watts of near-perfect beam quality from a single tube. Built around a hybrid waveguide/unstable resonator design, the i401 is driven by four field-replaceable integrated RF modules resulting in a rise time of less than 100 μs. Internal beam conditioning before the output aperture first conditions, collimates, and then rotates the linear beam polarization 45° as an aid in applications where a circular polarizer is used.

The i401 operates at duty cycles ranging from < 10% all the way up to 100% (full CW operation). With a best-in-class energy efficiency, up to 23% better than other 400 W lasers, the i401 offers immediate savings on energy costs and its single tube design means the i401 weighs 24% less than competing lasers—an important consideration when mounting the laser on moving gantries or robotic motion systems.

Other important design features include a pre-aligned output beam (centered in the aperture within ± 1.0 mm), an internal electromechanical shutter for maximum operator safety when integrated into the user’s control system, a TCP/IP web-based Internet interface for monitoring operating parameters, an internal humidity sensor that allows you to monitor relative humidity levels to prevent condensation damage and a built-in gas purge port for ease of connection to a nitrogen or instrument-grade air purge system.