Demonstration of Pinhole Laser Beam Profiling Using a Digital Micromirror Device

Demonstrated for the first time, to the best of the authors' knowledge, is two-dimensional (2-D) pinhole laser beam profiling using a Texas Instruments visible band digital micromirror device (DMD). Software controlled micromirror digital tilt positions across the DMD plane create a moving pinhole for sampling an arbitrary distribution laser beam power profile. A 532-nm 0.5-W laser coupled to an optically addressed nematic liquid crystal spatial light modulator is used to generate a laser beam black-and-white high-resolution test line pattern having a 62.5-mum linewidth. The test pattern is successfully profiled using a DMD formed 27.36 mum times 27.36 mum pinhole. Demonstrated for the first time is 2-D knife-edge DMD-based profiling of an ultraviolet 337-nm 4-ns pulsewidth 10-Hz pulsed laser beam.