SCC0746 - LASER PHYSICS

insegnamento

ID:

SCC0746

Durata (ore):

48

CFU:

SSD:

FISICA DELLA MATERIA

Anno:

2025

Periodo di attività

Primo Semestre (22/09/2025 - 16/01/2026)

Obiettivi Formativi

Laser Physics is fundamental to various research fields in experimental Optics. This course is highly beneficial for students pursuing a research career in Optics and related fields, including Laser Micromachining, Biophysics, Medical Physics, and Astrophysics. The course aims to equip students with the concepts and methods needed to recognize and understand laser dynamics and different laser regimes. Additionally, it provides the tools necessary to design basic laser solutions for technological problems. At the end of the course, theoretical knowledge will be reinforced with practical lessons in the ultrafast nonlinear optics laboratory. Here, students will observe different types of lasers, both in continuous wave (CW) and pulsed regimes, and identify the various components of laser systems. By the end of this course, students should be able to: Analyze and categorize the physical mechanisms underpinning lasers. Interpret the fundamental laser dynamics using rate equations and provide a physical insight. Describe the functioning of lasers in different regimes. Evaluate the requirements and conditions necessary to achieve different lasing regimes. Design basic laser systems suitable for specific tasks, calculating the most appropriate parameters. Critically evaluate the main applications of laser physics in science and technology.

Prerequisiti

Students are expected to have a basic understanding of electromagnetism and quantum physics. Specifically, students should have completed courses in Electromagnetism and Physics of Matter. Additionally, it is advisable that students include an Optics course in their curriculum and have already attended it.

Metodi didattici

The course primarily consists of lectures, during which the instructor presents topics through calculations and supports all statements with practical examples (44 hours). When necessary, the instructor will provide students with additional materials, such as articles and reviews. The final 4 hours of the course will be dedicated to observing amplified laser systems in the laboratory. During this time, students will identify the various parts of the laser systems. Additionally, the lasers will be operated to demonstrate their functionality and to generate and observe some nonlinear optics effects.

Verifica Apprendimento

The final examination is an oral exam. While the content and structure changes from case to case, the exam will consist, in general, of at least three questions covering three different parts of the program: Radiation-matter interaction and laser dynamics equations Resonators, cavities, and pumping schemes Generation of short and ultra-short pulses in lasers The exam aims to verify that students can provide a physical explanation of laser dynamics and describe fundamental laser dynamics using rate equations. They should be able to explain how a laser operates in different regimes, detailing the requirements and conditions necessary to achieve these regimes. Students are expected to discuss the topics learned using proper technical language and evaluate the main applications of laser physics. Students will be required to develop their answers fully, and each question will be worth up to 10 points. The final score will be the sum of these points. In the case of a maximum score (30 points), the student will be given a fourth question for merit (full mark cum laude), to evaluate their ability to reason on topics slightly outside the course program, though closely related.

Contenuti

- Recap on EM theory and EM waves - Basic concepts underpinning the laser idea - Properties of laser beams - Light-matter interaction - Energy levels and transitions - Ray Optics and Basic Optical - Elements of Wave Optics - Optical Resonators - Gain media pumping processes - The laser dynamic: the rate equations in the steady state - The laser spectrum - The laser dynamic: rate equations in the pulsed case - Mode locking