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LaserMicroscope

LaserMicroscope

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Hey all, just wanted to get some feedback from you fine folks about what I should add to my collection next, after these difficult times pass.
I currently have 2 445-455 lasers in the 1.6-2.7w range, so in that bracket I’m pretty good. I’m sort of debating between three options:

DIY a 7W blue
DIY a ~900mw 405nm
Buy a Sanwu 492

I already have a DIY 488nm so 492 would be a really cool way to expand my spectrum...BUT, I also don’t have any 405nm lasers in that power category (like not even close) and I also REALLY want a nice bright violet laser, since my current ones are so very weak and I love that wavelength.
And there’s the ever looming 7W blue - I already have high powered blues, but, I mean come on, of course I also want to build a 7W monster!

Because the 7W will cost substantially more, what I’m asking is sort of twofold:

A) What’s cooler, a BIG power upgrade in my 405 laser stable, or a lower power cyan unit but that fits beautifully into the spectrum of my other blues
B) should I just ignore them both for now and go for the big one, and build that beefy 7w?

love to hear your opinions on this! Cheers!
 





I cant tell you which to get because my two favorite lasers are my 1.6W 405nm and my 5W 445nm. (My 5W is kinda old so it's not as powerful as it used to be and the driver was never turned as high as it can go, but it is the type of diode that produces 7W)

I can say that I do love the powerful 405, and its divergence isnt terrible for a multimode. The 7W on the other hand has terrible divergence (unless you incorporate cylindrical lenses which is a PITA compared to standard setups) and will require a hefty heat sink if you want any kind of respectable duty cycle, my 5W has a 2" diameter heatsink and my 405 is about half that. If you get the 7W, get both a g2 and g8/g7 lens for it, the g2 will provide max burning power up close and the g8 will sorta tame the divergence a bit. If you love burning stuff get the 7W. If you have a 2.7W then you already know it can ignite things. The 7W does basically the same thing but MUCH faster, and can do scary stuff like punch holes through tinfoil and melt solder. I have melted bismuth with mine. I hope it goes without saying that you need good safety glasses for all of these but none more so than the 7W.

If you go for the 405, I recommend going 1.5W or 1.6W to get the brightest beam possible, a g2 lens is fine unless you just really want really really good divergence. The divergence on the single mode 405s is better, but I personally have had terrible luck with them burning out quickly on me whenever I exceed about 600mW, and compared to most multimode lasers I have, the multimode 405 seems almost single mode by comparison. If you go for the single mode 405, and try for 900mW, you would suggest a soft start type of driver.

492 is a very nice color, not quite blue, not quite green. If you have it on next to other longer WL greens, it will seem blue, and next to shorter WL blues, it will seem green
Hope that helps
 
Last edited:
Shakenawake said:
I cant tell you which to get because my two favorite lasers are my 1.6W 405nm and my 5W 445nm. (My 5W is kinda old so it's not as powerful as it used to be and the driver was never turned as high as it can go, but it is the type of diode that produces 7W)

I can say that I do love the powerful 405, and its divergence isnt terrible for a multimode. The 7W on the other hand has terrible divergence (unless you incorporate cylindrical lenses which is a PITA compared to standard setups) and will require a hefty heat sink if you want any kind of respectable duty cycle, my 5W has a 2" diameter heatsink and my 405 is about half that. If you get the 7W, get both a g2 and g8/g7 lens for it, the g2 will provide max burning power up close and the g8 will sorta tame the divergence a bit. If you love burning stuff get the 7W. If you have a 2.7W then you already know it can ignite things. The 7W does basically the same thing but MUCH faster, and can do scary stuff like punch holes through tinfoil and melt solder. I have melted bismuth with mine. I hope it goes without saying that you need good safety glasses for all of these but none more so than the 7W.

If you go for the 405, I recommend going 1.5W or 1.6W to get the brightest beam possible, a g2 lens is fine unless you just really want really really good divergence. The divergence on the single mode 405s is better, but I personally have had terrible luck with them burning out quickly on me whenever I exceed about 600mW, and compared to most multimode lasers I have, the multimode 405 seems almost single mode by comparison. If you go for the single mode 405, and try for 900mW, you would suggest a soft start type of driver.

492 is a very nice color, not quite blue, not quite green. If you have it on next to other longer WL greens, it will seem blue, and next to shorter WL blues, it will seem green
Hope that helps
Click to expand...

Appreciate the input! I know about the divergence issues with the 7W, my concerns were limited though because I can’t think of many occasions where I could safely project a beam of that power over any long distances so I’d likely be up close. I’m definitely leaning towards either the 492 or the 405. The color of the 492 interests me, I just wish the ~470 diodes were more available/more stable (I’ve heard some bad things). Where did you source the 1.5-1.6w multi mode diodes? I usually order diodes from DTR and as far as I can tell he only has the 900mw single mode.
 
Do you have any greens? A 1W green will look just as bright as a 7W blue
 
Welcome to the LPF. Most of the diodes in the 470nm to 510nm range come from Sharp. I have ones doing 477nm, 488nm, and on and on. You will need to use some other lens than most of the glass ones as there is a rectangular artifact that appears with most glass lenses. DTR's 2 element 520nm AR coated lens is an exception. I have also had some good results with the acrylic lenses that come with most module purchases, but they are short. So, I use fingernail polish to adhere them to the focus lens holders. It works well as it is easily removed with acetone if you need a do over.
 
Go for the cyan, you won't be disappointed by that part of the spectrum regardless of where it sits.
Just before you go for it, be sure you do own 488 first. If mostly blue and truly 488nm then 492nm will look drastically different.
 
The 488nm diode is made by Sharp. It's part number is GH04850B2G. You can find them on eBay as well as DTR's site. If you get one and would like it setup and measured for wavelength and power I would be happy to do that for you. You would only need to pay for shipping it back to you.
 

😮 nice! I was reading the specs on that and I was a little unclear what he meant by 350mw/1.1w (pulse). From the testing documentation he provided it seemed to be operating >1W in CW, but I couldn’t tell for sure and I didn’t want to end up with a diode I could only run at max power when pulsed.
 
paul1598419 said:
The 488nm diode is made by Sharp. It's part number is GH04850B2G. You can find them on eBay as well as DTR's site. If you get one and would like it setup and measured for wavelength and power I would be happy to do that for you. You would only need to pay for shipping it back to you.
Click to expand...

Thanks very much! I already have that one actually and it works like a charm, really beautiful laser. Despite being one of my least powerful, it’s one of my favorites since my first published work used a lot of GFP fluorescence microscopy hence 488nm light being close to my heart, plus it ALWAYS turns heads - blue lasers in general do that, but this one is a laser color that 99% of people really have never seen. I do wish I had an LPM so I could get a number for the power, but wavelength wise I’m pretty confident it’s outputting right around 488.
 
Yes, I also have a single line argon laser doing 488nm. It is a beautiful color. One of my favorites too.
 
Here is a 405 I built some time ago. They are pretty good and hardy this is the max I went with.
Rich:)94E7D871-8DC7-4EB8-A2E4-81A6B4623A07_1_105_c.jpegECE0F139-F98F-4F0D-B3D8-EB1F855E256F_1_201_a.jpeg3F426C25-3942-4377-AAB4-ADFB29840CD5_1_201_a.jpegBB00348C-6306-4453-8A6F-AF683C0F33FF_1_201_a.jpeg
 
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