text:
|Publication number
|Publication type
|Application number
|Publication date
|Nov 30, 2010
|Filing date
|Jan 24, 2006
|Priority date
|Jan 24, 2005
|Fee status
|Also published as
|Publication number
|Alex Ezra Cable, Johan Michael Larsson, Lars Goran Sandstrom, Bengt Kleman
|Original Assignee
|Thorlabs, Inc.
|Export Citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Patent Citations (33), Non-Patent Citations (13), Referenced by (14), Classifications (19), Legal Events (2)
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet
The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/647,078, "Compact Laser with Continuous Wavelength Scanning," by Alex Cable, Michael Larsson, Lars Sandstrom, and Bengt Kleman, filed on Jan. 24, 2005, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a tunable multimode laser and, in particular, to a compact laser with mode-hopping wavelength scanning.
2. Discussion of Related Art
External Cavity Lasers (ECLs) are now commonly used in several applications where a continuously tunable laser source is needed. Although there are many commercial manufacturers of ECLs, covering a broad range of designs on the market, there are still many applications that would benefit from a dramatic increase in the tuning speed that current designs cannot offer, even if this increase comes at the expense of other operating parameters of the system such as the dynamic coherence length and power stability.
More specifically, fast ECLs with tuning speeds greater than 1,000,000 nm/s, tuning ranges of at least 5% of the center wavelength, and coherence lengths of at least several millimeters are not currently available commercially. Lack of wavelength tuning speed is a major disadvantage in present ECLs in that there are many applications that would benefit from substantially increased tuning speeds. Current ECLs, for example, may have a sufficient tuning range and also a truly single-mode behavior, and thus a coherence length of significantly more than a few millimeters (often many meters), but their tuning speed is limited to approximately 1,000 nm/s or less.
Note that there are tunable lasers that offer rapid, highly precise wavelength switching. For example, Syntune of Kista Sweden offers one such switchable laser that is capable of point-to-point wavelength switching times of less than 50 ns. However, such systems do not offer continuous sweeping of their output wavelength. Instead, they move discretely from one wavelength to another without generating a well-defined wavelength during the time interval required to move from one stable wavelength to another. Further, the Syntune laser requires a significant manufacturing infra-structure and is not easily implemented at new wavelengths. Another product that has some of the desired characteristics is offered by Micron Optics. The Micron Optics system is referenced in a scientific article that appeared in Optics Express, 8 Sep. 2003, Vol. 11, No 18, pages 2183 to 2189. The Micron Optics source provided 2 mW of optical power, a sweep time of 3.5 ms, a center wavelength of 1308 nm, and a FWHM (full width half maximum) sweep bandwidth of 87 nm. The Micron Optics system, assuming that the total swept range (defined as the 99% power points) is approximately twice the FWHM sweep bandwidth of 87 nm, results in a sweep speed of approximately 50,000 nm/s. The Micron Optics system, however, utilizes an intra-cavity fiber optic element and is susceptible to unwanted polarization variations as well as being limited to tuning speeds much less than that required by high-speed applications. Additionally, the Micron Optics system is a fiber based laser and as such it is difficult to make the cavity sufficiently short to enable very high tuning rates. The length of a tunable laser determines the transit time of a photon or a group of photons. If a group of photons of a specific wavelength takes too long in transiting the laser, when they return to the filter element the filter element could be tuned to another wavelength and hence provide unwanted attenuation of the laser action. The article by R. Huber et. al. in Optics Express 2 May 2005 V13, No 9 page 3513 to 3528 provides a more complete description of this limitation.
The typical design solution for an ECL is to provide a mirror or grating rotatable around a pivot axis that can be rotated to hold the laser in the same longitudinal mode over the laser's entire tuning range. The pivot axis is chosen such that both equation 1 and equation 2, shown below, can be simultaneously satisfied:
λN =d(sin α+sin β), (1)
Nλ N=2L. (2)
In Equations 1 and 2, λN is the average instantaneous output wavelength of the laser, N is the longitudinal mode number of the laser, d is the grating constant measured in the same units as the wavelength, α is the angle of incidence of the light field upon the grating, β is the angle of diffraction of the light field off the grating, and L is the optical path length of the laser cavity. If the two conditions of Equations 1 and 2 are simultaneously fulfilled during the wavelength tuning with N fixed, the resulting laser will tune continuously and without any longitudinal mode hops. While there are several mechanical solutions that may satisfy the requirements of the two equations shown above, those that are found commercially or in the scientific literature are limited, due to their size, to tuning speeds significantly below the desired tuning speeds. The mechanics required to rotate a mirror or grating in accordance with the Equation 2 above with N fixed are almost always complicated mechanisms that have large inertial mass, which prevents them from being actuated at the high speeds required for rapid tuning.
To our knowledge, the fastest commercially available continuously swept single longitudinal mode tunable laser is offered by New Focus and is advertised as providing 1000 nm/s scan speeds. In order to reach the desired scan speeds of 1,000,000 nm/s, the moving optical element, which is typically a mirror or optical grating, is best rotated around its center of mass and is best kept as small as possible. Utilizing a resonant scanner provides a convenient means to achieve both these objectives; however this method typically has the rotation axis centered on the moving optical element, and Equation 2 cannot generally be met when N is held constant. In other words, the longitudinal mode condition NλN=2L cannot be satisfied continuously, and the laser radiation will jump from one longitudinal mode to another when the tuning range is significant enough to be of interest.
The mode jump can be one or several mode distances wide, the mode distance being:
With these mode jumps present, the laser will no longer be a continuously tunable laser, and the dynamic coherence length of the laser will become erratic and degrade below the static coherence length of the system. In order to reduce the size of the mode jump, the cavity length can be increased, but that will also make the laser more disposed to multimode behavior and thus also contribute to a short coherence length.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,956,355 (the '355 patent), a laser design in which the length of the cavity of a widely tunable single mode laser is adjusted to compensate for changes in wavelength is disclosed. The '355 patent disclosed that the laser could be made to provide nearly continuous frequency tuning through an appropriate choice of the laser cavity components and geometry while also offering a high scan rate. The method proposed in the '355 patent used a steerable mirror and a diffraction grating-which provided the wavelength selectivity-oriented such that the steerable mirror sweeps the light field across the grating in such a way to have the cavity length change to offset the changes in wavelength with the goal of maintaining a near balance in Equation 2 above, with N held constant. It was further proposed in the '355 patent that an additional element could be added such that the residual error or imbalance in Equation 2 could be accounted for such that a precise balance of Equation 2 could be maintained across a broad tuning range. While this approach seems feasible, to our knowledge, there has been no successful implementation of this proposed design.
The instantaneous coherence length of a wavelength swept laser can be measured utilizing one of several methods, usually involving different kinds of interferometers. One such method is to utilize a fiber based Michelson interferometer. The coherence length, Lc, is given by:
L c=2�HWHM,
were HWHM is the displacement of one of the mirrors in the interferometer required to change the interferogram from 100% of maximum to 50% of maximum. Note that the factor of 2 accounts for the double pass (forward and backward) in the moving arm of the Michelson interferometer.
There is a need in many applications to simultaneously reach high nearly continuous-tuning speeds and dynamic coherence lengths of at least a few millimeters. This is the case in Swept Source Optical Coherence Tomography (SS-OCT) as well as in some optical remote fiber sensing and optical component testing applications. In SS-OCT the coherence length of the source sets a limit on the imaging depth, with the potential imaging depth scaling linearly with the coherence length.
In accordance with the present invention, a nearly continuous wavelength scanning multimode laser is presented that has a large scanning rate while maintaining sufficient coherence length to be utilized in swept-source applications. In some embodiments of the present invention, a compact laser light source can have a wavelength scanning range of over about 140 nm with variable scan rates of up to about 10 nm/μs and a coherence length of between about 3 mm to about 30 mm.
Instead of trying to maintain a single longitudinal mode or nearly single longitudinal mode as the laser is scanned in wavelength, as is attempted in other systems as described above, some embodiments of the present invention provide a laser design that is intentionally multimode. Additionally the tuning mechanism according to some embodiments of the present invention is such that as the laser is tuned in wavelength the family of longitudinal cavity modes changes significantly, by sometimes many tens of thousands of modes.
A compact laser system according to some embodiments of the present invention includes an optical cavity, a light generating and optical gain medium section, and a beam shaping optical system; an optical propagation medium; and a fast mechanical wavelength tuning section positioned to receive light from the light generating section and the optical propagation medium, the fast mechanical wavelength tuning section-including a dispersive part-to retro reflect selected wavelengths of light to the optical propagation medium, and the light generating section, wherein the wavelength of the laser system can be scanned. In some embodiments the first end-reflector of the optical cavity is created from one end of the light generating and optical gain medium. In some embodiments the second end-reflector of the optical cavity is embedded within the fast mechanical wavelength tuning section. In some embodiments the second end-reflector of the optical cavity is a separate optical element. In some embodiments, the fast mechanical wavelength tuning section includes a dispersive part, a spectral optical filtering part, and a reflector part. In some embodiments, the reflector part is the dispersive part. In some embodiments, the reflector part serves as a second end-reflector of the laser system cavity. In some embodiments, the reflector part is combined with the spectral optical filtering part. In some embodiments, the total optical path length of the cavity is as short as 25 mm. In some embodiments the total optical path length of the cavity can be varied from 25 mm to many meters.
These and other embodiments are more fully discussed below with respect to the following figures.
Components and other details of one and the same type have a consistent numbering in the different figures. The first digit in the number refers to the numbering of the figure and the following digits refer to the specific type of component or detail.
In accordance with some embodiments of the present invention, a tunable laser system that provides more than 5 mW of average optical power delivered from a single mode optical fiber, a dynamic coherence length of greater than about 2 mm, a tuning range (measured at the 99% power points) of approximately 5% of the center wavelength when operating at a center wavelength of, for example, about 850 nm, and approximately 10% of the center wavelength when operating at a center wavelength of, for example, about 1330 nm, and a tuning speed that is continuously variable from 0 to about 2,000,000 nm/s is presented. In some embodiments, additional discrete increases in tuning speed up to about 10,000,000 nm/s can also be obtained with the upper limit on the tuning speed being limited by the availability of appropriate high speed scanners or high speed tunable optical filters. In some embodiments, the polarization state of laser light emitted from the laser is linearly polarized and highly stable. Once coupled into a single mode fiber, the polarization state can easily be controlled via a manual polarization controller. The intensity profile as a function of wavelength can have a shape that is very roughly Gaussian and can be further shaped to better follow a Gaussian profile by electrically controlling the drive current applied to, for example, a semiconductor-based gain element. Examples of applications that would benefit from the improved performance offered by rapidly scanned tunable lasers such as is provided by some embodiments of the present invention include metrology, spectroscopy, medical imaging, and any other optical technique that requires a source of rapidly tuned laser light with coherence lengths in the range of about 2 mm to about 50 mm.
Light-generating section 101, in some embodiments, can be of the conventional type for extended cavity laser systems. Such systems typically include a first optical cavity end-reflector that is often, but not always, one of the outer surfaces of a broadband gain element. The other surface of the gain element emits a divergent light field that is collimated with a short focal length lens. Light generation section 101 may be referred to herein as the light-generation section or as simply "the first section" and may contain any number of gain elements to achieve lasing at various wavelengths. The active laser gain medium can be made, for example, from semiconductors, e.g. gallium arsenide (GaAs), indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs), gallium nitride (GaN), indium phosphide/indium gallium arsenide phosphide (InP/InGaAsP), and indium phosphide/indium gallium arsenide/indium gallium arsenide phosphide (InP/InGaAs/InGaAsP); certain glasses (e.g. silicate or phosphate glasses), including both bulk glasses and optical fibers, typically doped with some rare-earth ions (e.g. of neodymium, ytterbium, or erbium) or transition metal ions (e.g. of titanium or chromium); certain optical crystals, also doped with some laser-active ions; gases, e.g. mixtures of helium and neon, nitrogen, argon, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, or metal vapors; or liquid solutions of certain dyes.
The beam shaping optics of light generation section 101 can be chosen from a broad selection of optical elements commonly used to shape or collimate the output of a laser diode. The collimation lens, which can be, for example, a GRIN lens or an aspheric lens, are used with the focal length of the optic chosen to provide full illumination of the optical grating when that is the element chosen to provide the wavelength dispersion. If the first optical cavity end-reflector is not attached to the gain element, but is a separate optical element, then an additional collimation lens could be used to collimate the light emitted from the first surface of the gain element. The beam shaping optics can be, for example, an anamorphic prism pair or cylindrical lens.
Embodiments of light sources according to the present invention are arranged to form multimode lasers as opposed to the conventional single mode operations. A multimode laser is a laser having multiple longitudinal modes (i.e., a number of discrete wavelengths that in aggregate make up the lineshape of the laser). In general, changing the length of the cavity, the filter function of the cavity, the gain, the loss, the alignment, or the reflectivity properties of the end-mirrors of a laser cavity changes the number of modes that can lase within the cavity (the last three of these change the number of modes by changing the lasing threshold). As used in the present invention, the term "gain medium" can be any element that provides optical gain, including semiconductor elements, rare-earth doped optical fiber based amplifiers, organic dyes, or other material. The terms "wavelength swept" wavelength tuned," "frequency tuned," "frequency swept," and "wavelength agile" are generally understood to be interchangeable. When referred to, the "cavity filter function" is the effective filter function of the entire laser cavity after it has been assembled, measured by measuring the spectral properties of the light that is emitted from the system with the light source operating below the lasing threshold. The terms "optical source" and "laser system" or "laser" are herein utilized interchangeably.
In general, a light source according to the present invention includes a laser built from two cavity end-mirrors, a gain element, and a tunable wavelength selecting device. These components are brought together into a configuration in which both the cavity length (which sets the mode spacing) and the filter function of the cavity are predetermined such that the laser provides the desired output characteristics. The main components also form a multimode laser; the task of correctly specifying each of the elements to achieve the unique characteristics of a light source with a coherence length greater than about 2 mm while providing for sweep speeds of up to about 10,000,000 nm/s over a wavelength range that is approximately 5% of the center wavelength of the laser is exemplified below.
As shown in
Light propagation section (or second section) 102 can either be free space or a medium such as a single mode or single mode polarization preserving optical fiber. Second section 102 can form the major part of the optical path within the optical cavity of the light source. In some embodiments, the length of second section 102 can be adjusted to optimize the performance of the laser system of the light source according to the present invention. As the length is changed, the longitudinal mode distance in the optical cavity as well as the coherence properties of the light source change. For each embodiment of light source, the length of the cavity can be adjusted until the laser performance is optimized in terms of coherence length, tuning range, and optical power. The performance of laser cavities with various length settings for the second section have been explored experimentally; the results indicate that acceptable performance can be obtain over a very broad range of distances. Embodiments of the light source with short cavity lengths, e.g. <50 mm, good overall performance can be obtained when the external cavity is well aligned to provide efficient coupling of the filtered light back into the gain element of first section 101. This efficient coupling ensures that the residual reflections from the intra-cavity side of the gain element do not cause an unwanted amplitude modulation of the output power as a function of wavelength. Poor alignment or a significant residual reflection from the intra-cavity facet or facets of the gain element can lead to amplitude modulations as a function of wavelength in the output, which have a frequency given by the free spectral range of the gain element. At longer cavity lengths, e.g. >400 mm, the performance of the light source can still remain acceptable. However, as the length of the cavity is increased significantly beyond this level the scan rate of the resulting light source can become limited. This effect is attributed to the fact that the cavity needs sufficient time to allow each wavelength to realize a sufficient number of passes around the cavity in order to achieve sufficient gain to sustain an appreciable output power. Hence, the tuning speed of the optical source has an upper limit that is related to the cavity length, the gain characteristics of the gain element, and the losses in the external cavity optics including the coupling losses back into the gain element.
A fast wavelength-tuning section 103 receives light from the light-generating section 101 that is passed through transportation section 102. This fast wavelength-tuning section 103 spectrally filters and retro-reflects selected wavelengths of light to light generating section 101. Tuning section 103 can include, in addition to a wavelength selective component, a spectral-optical-filtering-and-reflector device. The reflector part of the spectral-optical-and-filtering device can serve as a second optical end-reflector of the cavity of the laser system.
Tuning section (or third section) 103 includes a tuning element or elements and a supplemental spectral filtering element or elements which receives light from transportation section 102. Third section 103 acts to provide both the enhanced spectral filtering of the cavity light while also providing the tuning system for the laser. Third section 103 also provides a high efficiency retro-reflection required to form the laser resonator of the light source. Third section 103 provides the selected wavelengths of the intra-cavity light field that are returned to the first section of the system for amplification.
Some specific embodiments of light sources according to the present invention are discussed below with discussion of individual components of light generating section 101, transport section 102, and tuning section 103. The performance of some of the embodiments have been studied experimentally, and the anticipated scanning speed and tuning at a high frequency repetition rate, i.e., number of scans per second covering the relevant wavelength range independent of scan direction, up to about 16 kHz, with a coherence length of 11 mm or more has been demonstrated. Further, at slower tuning speeds the coherence length increased.
Some embodiments of light source according to the present invention form a tunable external cavity laser system with an output power in the milliwatt range, a coherence length of a couple of millimeters to a couple of tens of millimeters, and an upper tuning speed that would enable video rate acquisition of images in a SS-OCT system. The usefulness of various embodiments of the invention, however, is not limited to tomographic applications, and laser system according to some embodiments of the invention may also be of interest in other measurement applications that require high speed tunability of a coherent source of optical radiation.
Some embodiments of the present invention utilize a moderate length cavity, with a round trip cavity length of approximately 0.1 meter to approximately 1 meter, along with a supplemental spectral filter that narrows the filter function of the cavity while also acting as a high efficiency retro-reflector. The cavity length of the light source is adjusted for a given spectral filter such that the desired performance characteristics of the laser are optimized; these could be coherence length, optical output power, optical output intensity noise, as well as the size and weight of the light source. In general the narrower the pass band of the spectral filter, the longer the coherence length; however, the desire to obtain a high output power from the laser typically provides a lower limit on the pass band of the supplemental spectral filter. The additional spectral filter is referred to as a supplemental filter because in most commercially available ECL designs the aperture of the gain element along with the optical grating typically found in the laser cavity both act to form the primary spectral filtering element. The present invention achieves tuning speeds of from about 1000 nm/s to about 10,000,000 nm/s with the coherence length decreasing as the tuning speed is increased for a specific laser cavity configuration. When operating at approximately 2,000,000 nm/s a coherence length from an example light source according to the present invention of approximately 12 mm was obtained. These measurements were for a system operating with a center wavelength of 1.33 μm and a tuning range of approximately 130 nm.
One embodiment of the present invention was tested within an SS-OCT imaging system; the design of this particular laser is detailed in the following paragraphs. Details on the results of the OCT imaging study have been published in R. Huber et al. Optics Express 26 Dec. 2005 V13, No 26 page 10523 to 10538 ("Huber et al."), which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Gain element 811 can, in some embodiments, be bonded to a thermo-electric (TE) cooler to maintain a constant temperature. In some embodiments, gain element 811 can be maintained at a temperature of approximately 22� C.
The intra-cavity side of gain element 811 can utilize a curved waveguide and an AR coated facet. In some embodiments, an estimated effective intra-cavity facet reflectivity of approximately 10−4 is achieved, which suppresses self-lasing and allows element 811 to serve as a more effective gain medium for the external cavity of light source 800. Light from gain element 811 is coupled into aspheric lens 812. In some embodiments, aspheric lens 812 can have a 2 mm focal length and is AR coated. In some embodiments, both optical surfaces of aspheric lens 812 can be convex.
In light source 800, transportation section 102 is a free space region. In some embodiments, the free space region of transportation section 102 can be approximately 370 mm. The free space region of transportation section 102 can be utilized to adjust the overall length of the cavity formed in light source 800.
Light from the free space region of transportation section 102 is coupled into tuning section 103 of light source 800. Tuning section 103 includes grating 813, lens system 814, slit assembly 816, and mirror 815. In some embodiments, diffraction grating 813 can have a ruling density of about 1017 lines/mm. Diffraction grating 813 can be mounted on a resonant scanner 817 that provides an angular displacement and a particular operation frequency. For example, a resonant scanner 817 that provides a total angular displacement of approximately 14 degrees at 8 kHz can be obtained from Electro-Optical Products Corp.
Light from grating 813 can be coupled into lens system 814. In some embodiments, lens system 814 can be an achromatic doublet lens. In some embodiments, lens system 814 can be optimally arranged for operation at multiple wavelengths. For example, in some embodiments three wavelengths were used in the optimization of lens system 814: 1.0 μm, 1.3 μm, and 1.5 μm. In some embodiments, lens system 814 can have a 45 mm focal length.
Lens system 814 focuses light from scanner 813 onto slit 816. In some embodiments, slit 816 can be a 10 μm slit that is bonded directly onto the reflective surface of a broadband dielectric mirror 815. In some embodiments, mirror 815 can have a reflectivity of greater than about 98.5% over the complete operating range of light source 800 and is placed at the back focal plane of lens system 814. As such, the combination of mirror 815 and slit 816 form the back-reflector of a laser resonator of light source 800.
In some embodiments, light source 800 can be coupled into a collimating lens system (not shown). The collimating lens system may, for example, be an AR, coated aspheric lens, for example with a focal length of 0.7 mm. In some embodiments, light from the collimating lens system may be coupled into an isolator, for example a −55 dB optical isolator, that prevents back-reflections from re-entering the laser cavity of light source 800. In some embodiments, light from the isolator can be coupled through an aspheric lens into an optical fiber. For example, an AR coated, 4 mm focal length aspheric lens can be utilized to couple light into an AR coated single mode fiber.
Light source 800 can be wavelength sweep by rotating grating 813 with resonant scanner 817 as shown in
As shown in L. A. Kranendonk, R. J. Bartula, and S. T. Sanders, "Modeless operation of a wavelength-agile laser by high-speed cavity length changes," Opt. Express 13, 1498-1507 (2005), varying the cavity length at high speeds produces operation that is similar to the operation of a frequency shifted feedback laser, which is discussed in P. I. Richter and T. W. H�nsch, "Diode-Lasers in External Cavities with Frequency-Shifted Feedback," Opt. Commun. 85, 414-418 (1991). A value R is defined as the relative frequency change of the cavity modes with respect to their free spectral range during one optical roundtrip. The laser in the Kranendonk reference tunes in a modeless regime with a value R>>0.05 using a rapid change in cavity length that is intentionally introduced in order to achieve this modeless operation. In contrast, light source 800 and some other light sources according to the present invention tune with distinct cavity modes.
In light source 800 shown in
A number of other cavity designs were explored with non-zero values of R, and performance results were compared to that of an embodiment of light source 800 shown in
To estimate the coherence properties of embodiments of light source 800 while it was being frequency tuned, the fringe contrast was measured while the output was coupled into a Michelson interferometer. The amplitude of the fringe signal was measured as a function of the interferometer arm length difference. A 3 dB drop over about 3.5 to 4 mm arm length difference in the Michelson interferometer was observed. The coherence length for the static case when the laser is not frequency scanned is determined by measuring the spectral linewidth of the output with an optical spectrum analyzer. A resolution limited static linewidth of <0.02 nm was measured, which corresponds to a coherence length of greater than about 8 cm.
The filter function of a cavity of light source 800 is taken with the injection current set to 45 mA, which is well below threshold for gain element 811 formed from an InP/InGaAsP semiconductor optical amplifier. In some embodiments, care was taken to ensure that the FWHM of the resulting lineshape did not change appreciably as the drive current was increased from the point at which the lineshape just started to emerge from the noise.
As shown in
The strong absorption lines apparent in
The fast intensity modulation apparent in
In order to ensure stable operation of these embodiments of light source 800 over a broad tuning range, as well as to fulfill the need to reduce the spectral ripple described above, strong feedback from the external cavity can be utilized. Strong feedback may be defined as the condition where REC>>RSG where RSG is the reflectivity of the intra-cavity facet of gain medium 811, and REC is the effective reflectivity of the extended cavity when all optical elements, including the coupling losses of the feedback back into gain medium 811, are considered. See reference A. Olsson, C. L. Tang "Coherent Optical Interference Effects in External-Cavity Semiconductor Lasers," IEEE J. of Quantum Electronics QE-17 No 8, (1981) pp 1320. Therefore REC is dependent upon the reflectivity of each of the optical surfaces within light source 800, as well as the spatial mode structure and alignment errors of the light field within the cavity.
Light source 800, as shown in
The OSA peak hold feature was utilized to capture and average a large number of forward and backward scans from light source 800, which was operating at 16 kHz due to the inherently low temporal response of the spectrum analyzer. It should be noted that the spectral data acquired by the OSA will be distorted by the sinusoidal nature of the resonant scanner based tuning element of tuning section 103. This effect was minimized by setting the duty factor of light source 800 below 85% by increasing the scan amplitude beyond the tuning range of the laser, thus ensuring that the more linear portion of the sinusoidal scanner mechanism was utilized.
The average optical power measured after the laser output from an embodiment of light source 800 coupled into a single mode fiber was approximately 15 mW. For each complete cycle of the resonant scanner, the embodiment of light source 800 produces one forward (shorter to longer wavelengths) and one backward (longer to shorter wavelengths) sweep of its wavelength range. The forward sweep was found to be of slightly higher output power, approximately 10%. However, when the imaging properties of the forward and backward sweeps of the laser were individually tested, little or no differences could be seen in their quality. The peak output power was estimated to be about 30 mW, which is approximately the power achieved when light source 800 is static, and lasing at the approximate peak of the ASE curve is shown in
As illustrated above with respect to
The choice of gain element 811 is based first on the desired center wavelength, total tuning range, and optical output power. Once materials that fulfill these major parameters are determined, the elements with the greatest tuning range and highest output power are typically selected as the first candidates. The tuning range is indicated by the spectral plot of the ASE for a gain element under consideration. The optical power is determined by the optical damage threshold of gain element 811, which is typically limited by the output facets of gain element 811. The length of gain element 811, along with it's index of refraction, will determine the free spectral range (FSR) of gain element 811. The FSR will be the characteristic frequency, or if converted to wavelength, the characteristic wavelength, of the ripple of the laser as previously described. For example, if the light source is intended to be used as an OCT light source, then this ripple from gain element 811 will, if it is large enough, create a ghost image. This ghost image (which is a reproduction of the main image just shifted in depth) will occur at a depth that is related to the optical path length of gain element 811. In the example gain element discussed in R. Huber et al., a ghost image at approximately 3.55 mm (1 mm times the 3.55 index of the material) is formed. While this may not be a significant issue in a highly scattering medium, such as the samples used in the Huber work, other application could suffer by presence of such a ghost image. Extending the length of gain element 811, for example to twice its original length, or 2 mm for example, could potentially shift the ghost image out of the range of the primary image of the imaging device utilizing that gain element 811.
Once the gain element material and length of gain element 811 are determined, the reflectivity of the facets of gain element 811 can then be chosen. Two basic approaches have provided reasonable results. One is to select a gain element with the highest possible reflectivity for the left facet (referring to
The second approach is to select a reflectivity of gain element 811 in the range of 20% and design the light source such that the output coupler is the left facet of gain element 811. In both cases, the other facet of the gain element 811 is AR coated, and ideally the residual reflectivity is reduced by also utilizing a curved waveguide. Once gain element 811 has been processed (coated using coating technology well known in the field of ECL production) to achieve the desired reflectivities, the gain element is tested using an OSA to determine its ASE spectrum as well as the degree of ripple present on the spectrum. If this ripple is found to have a wavelength period that matches the etalon modes of the cavity, and if the magnitude of the ripple is less than 5%, then the gain element is assumed to be appropriate if the wavelength range is also acceptable. If it is between 5% to 10%, then care needs to be taken to ensure that the rest of the cavity has fairly low losses and that the strength of the back coupling from the extend cavity back into the gain element is large. The actual intended application will set the upper limit on the ripple.
After the selection of gain element 811 has been made, then the collimating optic lens system 812 in
The transport medium 102, which can be free space of the cavity formed between the reflective surfaces of gain element 811 and mirror 815, can be used to adjust the space between adjacent longitudinal cavity modes; this adjustment is made to achieve the appropriate number of cavity modes per unit time passing through the filter function of the cavity as it tunes, as well as providing for a sufficient number of modes falling within the filter function for a given configuration of the wavelength tuning and selection section. With the overall coherence length being roughly determined by the width of the filter function formed in the cavity, the stability of the laser, the uniformity of the coherence length across the tuning range, the intensity noise, as well as the ripple can all be effected by the choice of the overall length of the cavity. Typically a short cavity length can be achieved while ensuring the design goals of the light source. The resolution of the wavelength tuning and selection section was a significant factor in the ability to shorten the cavity length.
Next diffraction grating 813 is chosen. The size of grating 813 as utilized in
The next component after the grating in
As for the focal length of achromatic lens system 814, a range of focal lengths were tested, with good performance being achieved across a range from about 15 mm to about 50 mm. The shorter focal lengths were found to provide slighter better overall performance in terms of wavelength range, power, and coherence length. While the light source described in Huber et. al. had a 45 mm achromatic lens system, better results are possible using the shorter focal length optics. Choice of achromatic lens system 814 can also consider the largest diameter beam that can be supported by the cavity. Typically, the larger the diameter the better the performance. However, if a shorter focal length achromatic lens is used, then their small diameters need to be considered. The design challenge here is to provide the greatest degree of wavelength selectivity while introducing the lowest possible loss at the center wavelength of the filter.
The next component to be considered in
Mirror 815, to which slit 816 is bound, ideally would have substantially 100% reflectivity across the wavelength range of light source 800. This goal was nearly achieved by using a high quality broadband mirror provided by Thorlabs, Inc.
The use of the cat-eye configuration in tuning section 103, as noted above, provides a design with good performance over a broad range of wavelengths, while also providing a system that is relatively tolerant of misalignment as previously noted.
Other embodiments of light sources according to the present invention are illustrated in
The dispersed beam b, which is a collimated beam of all wavelengths, in
In the embodiment shown in
In the embodiment shown in
In the embodiment shown in
In the embodiment shown in
In the embodiment shown in
The embodiments of laser system illustrated in
In some embodiments, the moveable wavelength dispersive device 16 shown in
In experimental tests of an embodiment of light source 100 such as that shown in
The collimated light field from section two 102 would enter section three 103 and be incident upon the diffraction grating 16. The angle of incidence was maximized so as to illuminate the maximum area of the grating 16 and to provide the greatest angular dispersion of the light generated by the broadband gain element 12 of section one 101. The dispersed light was then incident upon by a high quality achromatic lens 17, and thus the dispersed light field was then focused down onto the narrow slit and mirror assembly 19. The lenses tested with good results were either high quality achromats designed for use in the wavelength range of the gain medium or glass aspheric lenses. All the lenses utilized high quality multilayer antireflective coatings to minimize the intra-cavity losses. The focal lengths successfully used were in the range of about 10 mm to about 50 mm for the achromatic lenses, and in the range of about 6 mm to about 8 mm for the aspheric lenses.
The final optical component of this section, slit mirror 19, included a narrow slit cut into a thin foil that was ⅜″ in diameter. The slit widths that were successfully tested were in the range of 5 μm to 25 μm in width and 3 mm in height. The slit was then mounted in direct contact with a high quality mirror to form slit mirror 19. The mirror that provided the best results were commercially available mirrors that feature a broadband dielectric coating that was highly reflective across the wavelength range of interest. See Thorlabs model number BB1-E04 for the 1.3 μm wavelength range and BB1-E03 for the 800 nm wavelength range. The lens was placed approximately 10 to 20 mm from grating 16, the distance between the lens 17 and grating 16 was not found to be very important for the successful operation of the laser; however in general a slight improvement in the coherence length and output power was found the closer that lens 17 was placed to grating 16. With the resonant scanner 15 off, the lens 17 was placed on the optical axis of the system. In this case, the optical axis is defined as the path defined by the center wavelength of the spontaneously emitted light which is emitted by the broadband gain element 12 as it propagates away from the grating 16 in a direction defined by the grating characteristics and the angle of incidence for the incoming light field. The lens 17 thus positioned acts to focus the light field to an area that is one focal length away. At this point the slit and mirror assembly was placed so that it acted as both a spectral filtering element as well as the retro-reflector for the laser resonator.
With proper alignment and full electrical power to the first element, the embodiment of light source 100 described above will lase. When the resonant scanner 16 is switched on, light source 100 would begin to scan across the wavelength range determined by the gain medium 12 and the cavity losses. When lasing, the output power was larger than 15 mW for one of the gain elements tests. The tests illustrated a tuning range greater than 138 nm and a coherence length (Lc=2�HWHM of the fringe contrast measurement within a Michelson interferometer) measured to be longer than 11 mm. A number of gain elements were tested successfully. The actual gain element chosen will depend on the desired center wavelength, optical power, and tuning range required. Semiconductor gain elements are readily available from a number of suppliers (e.g., InPhenix, Inc., of Livermore, Calif.).
A comparison between the embodiments illustrated in
The slit mirror 19 used as a filtering end mirror is an intricate component to manufacture. In experiments, a slit in a metal foil in contact with an underlying mirror film has been successfully used. The narrower the slit is made, the better the filtering action becomes. The intensity of the laser radiation, however, naturally goes down at the same time. In experiments, slit mirror widths in the range 5-25 μm have been found optimal with respect to the balance of filtering and intensity performance; however other slit widths can be utilized.
If a slit mirror with adjustable width is advantageous for filtering, a spectrometer slit together with a retro reflecting optical system behind the slit can be used. The optical system shall image the slit onto itself. A planar mirror with a collimating lens or a planar mirror and two lenses is positioned to collimate the light from the slit and then focus it and then reflect it with the mirror placed at the focus of the second lens. Alternatively, a concave mirror may serve this purpose. Additionally, two movable non-transparent plates could be held in place on top of or in close contact to a mirror. Two razor blades were test for this purpose, one attached to a translation stage, and one fixed to the surface of the mirror; this approach provided acceptable results.
In the embodiments illustrated in
The combination of the two scanning principles is illustrated in
In the embodiment shown in
The lenses that tested with good results were high quality achromats designed for use in the wavelength range of the gain medium. All the lenses utilized high quality multilayer antireflective coatings to minimize the intra-cavity losses. The focal lengths successfully used were in the range of 30 mm to 50 mm. Single lens configurations as well as multi lens configurations were tested; the multi lens configurations provided slightly better performance in term of optical power and coherence length. The final optical component of this section was comprised of a multi-slit mirror 313. The slit mirror had 20 reflective slits, each 20 μm wide. The reflective surface was protected aluminum. About 700 μm of material from either side of the 20 μm reflective slit had been removed by a dicing saw; the remaining reflective area between the reflective slits was covered with black masking tape. Other kinds of slit mirrors had been tested with good results, like several slits machined into thin foil disks mounted on an Al-protected mirror. The multi slit mirror was mounted on a brushless servomotor P/N TG2385-Delta, Thingap Corp of Ventura Calif., which was driven by an Advanced Motion Controls Brushless servo amplifier P/N B30A8. The nominal current was 4 A current at 45 V. The power supply used was a bench top BK precision 60 V 6 Amp DC power supply.
The number of slits that can be used is set by the combination of chosen diffraction grating 16, focal length of the lens 17, diameter size of the lens 17, the wavelength range of the gain medium 12 in the cavity, and the desired duty factor of the light source.
Lens 17 can be Thorlabs achromat lens AC254-050-C positioned 38 mm from the grating 16 (point on grating that beam hits to the front edge of the lens cell). The distance from the front edge of the lens cell (SM1L05) to the reflective slit was 50 mm and gave a 3 dB point of 111 nm tuning range when the laser current was 299.7 mA, and the motor was running at 132 Hz. The coherence length of the resulting laser was measured to be between 17.2 and 28.7 mm, depending on scan time.
There is a connection between scan time and coherence length of the radiation generated. In experiments with the multi-slit mirror, described above, this relation was studied. The coherence length of the radiation as a function of scan time was measured with a fiber based Michelson interferometer.
The optical systems 17 shown in
The embodiment shown in
In general, imaging applications such as OCT function best with a light source according to the present invention that has a coherence length of greater than about 3 mm, a tuning range in excess of 5% to 10% of the center wavelength, a power of about 0.5 mW or greater for lasers operating in the 850 nm range and about 5 mW or greater for lasers operating in the 1300 nm range, scan repetition frequencies of greater than about 10 kHz, and small ripple. Additionally the mode spacing, as well as the number of modes that can lase simultaneously, needs to be balanced such that the power fluctuations or intensity noise can be substantially removed via a balanced detection scheme and that the coherence length does not vary substantially as the system scans. In large part the coherence length depends on the filter function of the cavity, which in turn is most easily adjusted by changing the filter function of the fast wavelength tuning section. The stability of the coherence length over the tuning range can be important in some utilizations and is adjusted by changing the spacing as well as the number of modes that are supported by the cavity. The tuning range is dependent on the gain element, component losses, wavelength dependent component losses, scanner amplitude (whether the scanner amplitude is sufficient to cover a broad range of frequencies produced by the gain element), and the diffraction grating characteristics or the characteristics of whatever wavelength tuning and filtering element is chosen. If the scanning element provides a sinusoidal scan, then it is useful if the amplitude of the scanning element is broad enough to cover about 120% of the bandwidth of the gain element. The grating design is dependent on the ruling, blazing, angle of incidence, and area of illumination.
The cavity length can be short, medium, long, or may vary. Short cavities have wider mode spacings and hence few modes for a fixed filter function; however long cavity lengths limit the scan rates because of the round trip time for the photons in the cavity. The power of the laser is dependent on the optical gain element, damage thresholds of the optical components in the cavity, the operating frequency, and cavity losses. The spacing of the modes can be well defined and depends on the optical path length of the cavity. The number of modes supported in the cavity depends on the filter function, loss in the cavity, gain, and the alignment of the cavity. The filter function is dependent on the geometry of the cavity, the slit width of the slit-mirror, the diffraction grating, and the waveguide. The scan speed of the light source is dependent on the scanner, the diffraction grating and the angle of incidence of the light onto the grating, and the wavelength range of the laser.
Other embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the following claims.
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|Citing Patent
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|Wavelength-tunable light source
|Mar 15, 2011
|Nov 12, 2013
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|Methods, systems, and devices for timing control in electromagnetic radiation sources
|Mar 23, 2012
|Feb 25, 2014
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|Mar 8, 2013
|Apr 1, 2014
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|Dec 30, 2011
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|Oct 8, 2013
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|Jan 8, 2014
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|Nov 6, 2012
|Sep 8, 2015
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|Sep 22, 2010
|Sep 22, 2015
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|Mar 31, 2011
|Oct 20, 2015
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|Mar 24, 2011
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|Jun 17, 2009
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|Mar 23, 2012
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|U.S. Classification
|372/20, 372/101, 372/99, 372/72, 372/92, 372/93, 372/98, 372/102, 372/24
|International Classification
|Cooperative Classification
|European Classification
|May 22, 2006
Owner name: THORLABS, INC., NEW JERSEY
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:CABLE, ALEX EZRA;LARSSON, JOHAN MICHAEL;SANDSTROM, LARS GORAN;AND OTHERS;REEL/FRAME:017655/0426;SIGNING DATES FROM 20060515 TO 20060518
Owner name: THORLABS, INC., NEW JERSEY
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:CABLE, ALEX EZRA;LARSSON, JOHAN MICHAEL;SANDSTROM, LARS GORAN;AND OTHERS;SIGNING DATES FROM 20060515 TO 20060518;REEL/FRAME:017655/0426
|May 30, 2014
|Fee payment
Year of fee payment: 4


text:
Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort & Casino
Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort & Casino
Hotel Guest Rating: 7.3/10
1650 South Casino Drive Pmb 500
Laughlin, NV 89029
Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort & Casino
Located on the Colorado River, this Laughlin, Nevada resort & casino is 5 minutes' drive from Laughlin Bullhead International Airport. Two seasonal outdoor swimming pools and a hot tub are featured.Numerous shops, a 34-lane bowling alley, a movie theater featuring 3D films, and 2 nightclubs are available at Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort & Casino. This property offers 2 USS riverside boat cruise tickets to reservations of 2 or more consecutive nights (or one 2 for 1 buffet ticket during dry dock times) on select room types.All rooms feature a TV, en suite bathroom and tea and coffee-making facilities at Resort & Casino Don Laughlin's Riverside. Select rooms provide river views.Breakfast, lunch and dinner are served daily at the 24-hour Riverview Restaurant on-site. The Food Court and Sidewalk Café provide additional dining options for guests' at Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort.Las Vegas, Nevada is 100 miles away from Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort & Casino. Havasu National Wildlife Refuge is 1 hours' drive away. ...read more
- Restaurant
- Valet parking
Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort & Casino Amenities
- 24-hour front desk
- Air conditioning
- Airport shuttle (surcharge)
- ATM/cash machine on site
- Babysitting/child services
- Bar
- Barber/beauty shop
- Billiards
- Bowling
- Casino
- Chapel/shrine
- Children's playground
- Currency exchange
- Daily maid service
- Darts
- Entertainment staff
- Evening entertainment
- Express check-in/check-out
- Facilities for disabled guests
- Family rooms
- Fax/photocopying
- Games room
- Gift shop
- Heating
- Hot tub/jacuzzi
- Karaoke
- Laundry
- Lift
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- Meeting/banquet facilities
- Newspapers
- Nightclub/DJ
- Non-smoking rooms
- Outdoor pool (seasonal)
- Restaurant
- Restaurant (buffet)
- Safety deposit box
- Shops (on site)
- Snack bar
- Spa and wellness centre
- Special diet menus (on request)
- Sun terrace
- Swimming pool
- Terrace
- Tour desk
- Valet parking
- Vending machine (drinks)
- Vending machine (snacks)
- Water sport facilities (on site)
Hotel Information
You must show a valid photo ID and credit card upon check-in. Please note that all special requests cannot be guaranteed and are subject to availability upon check-in. Additional charges may apply.Please note: Guests must be 21 years or older to check in.Important River Tour Information: All tours based upon availability; times subject to change. The Riverside Resort Hotel & Casino is not responsible for low river levels, engine malfunctions or dry dock time. Tickets are not available during New's Years Holiday and Laughlin River Run. Blackout dates apply.Please note: Per county ordinance, there is a 14 night maximum stay per calendar month. Maximum guests per room is 4.Please note:- Smoking/Non-Smoking room requests are based on availability and are not guaranteed.- Roll-away beds and cribs are available for an additional fee.- Each guest can book up to 3 rooms. Any additional will be subject to different policies.- USS Riverside boat cruise tickets are only available on 2 or more consecutive night reservations. Guests are required to show a photo identification and credit card upon check-in. Please note that all Special Requests are subject to availability and additional charges may apply.
Hotel Guest Reviews of the Don Laughlin's Riverside Resort & CasinoOur hotel ratings and reviews are from real hotel guests. Priceline.com ensures that its reviews are guests-only by proactively sending hotel surveys to customers after they've completed their hotel stays. In the post-stay surveys, priceline.com hotel customers are asked a number of questions about their stay and the hotel. On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the best, the survey asks guests to rate their overall experience and specifically rate the hotel's cleanliness, staff and location. Priceline.com does not allow site visitors to post unsolicited hotel reviews.
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
As Comic-Con International attendees spent the past week reminiscing about their favorite moments from the annual comic convention, work is just beginning for agents of ICE DISH, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Illegal Superheroes.
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Have you seen Superman -- the superhero, not the movie? If so, you should probably report him to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). After...
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text:
Skype for Business on PRIV Puts Worldwide Collaboration in Hand
To be effective, business teams must have the unhindered ability to collaborate, and having the right communication… / Read More
To be effective, business teams must have the unhindered ability to collaborate, and having the right communication… / Read More
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text:
Looking for a Used 350Z in your area?
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The 2006 Nissan 350Z saw a number of important changes in 2006, namely the inclusion of the larger engine in more models. Available in only a few trims the year before, the 300 horsepower engine was made available in all models with manual transmission for 2006. The front end was remodeled, 18-inch wheels were offered across the board, and brakes were improved. There are plenty of 2006 350Zs to choose from: Nissan offered eight different trims, which included five coupes and three convertibles. The Enthusiast was the best seller, and the Grand Touring was the most fully-loaded. Other offerings included the base model, the luxurious Touring, and the sporty Track. The manual transmission got the 3.5-liter, 300-horsepower V6, and the automatic got the old 287-horsepower engine. Drivers are very enthusiastic about the 2005 350Z, saying they like the car's handling, acceleration, and appearance. Some drivers feel the inside materials are of poor quality, and there are a few gripes about the size of the cupholders.
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text:
MONTAGUE, Mass. -- To get to this point, it goes without question that a little luck is needed.
For Agawam, on Friday night, the Brownies received their fair share and then some after pulling out a thrilling 2-1 victory over Marlborough in the Division 1 state semifinal played at Turners Falls High School.
With only three hits to its credit, Agawam won this tilt on the strength of its defense, its cool customer of a pitcher (freshman Allison Wheeler) and a lack of execution by the Panthers.
The Brownies (18-6) is back in the finals for the first time since 1995 when they lost to Bishop Fenwick. They will face Milford on Saturday at 7 p.m. from Rockwood Field in Worcester. Agawam and Milford are no strangers to one another. In last year's state semifinal, the Hawks dominated the Brownies, 13-0.
"Our defense got us here and our defense won this game," said Agawam head coach Kathy Georgina. "Allison [Wheeler] pitched great again. We are ready for Milford. This time we aren't walking in blind like last year. We know Shannon Smith is an excellent pitcher. We know what she can do and we know what we can do."
Against Marlborough, Agawam dodged a number of bullets to survive. The Panthers (17-7) finished the game having left eight runners on base, including seven in scoring position.
Trailing 2-1, Marlborough squandered a golden opportunity to tie or take the lead in the fourth.
With two runners on, Victoria Petrie lined a Wheeler fastball to right for a single. Lead runner Jessica Acosta, who was on second base, was waved around third. But right fielder Mary Kate Reidy threw missile to catcher Rielly Wieners. Just a few feet from home plate, Acosta stopped dead in her tracks and retreated back to third.
"We didn't get flustered," Georgina said. "Allison [Wheeler] showed tremendous maturity out there. That out we got [in the fourth] was a huge break for us.
Meanwhile, trailing runner Jen Bombard had already touched third at that point and went a few feet towards home. But once the senior saw Acosta coming back, Bombard spun around and headed back to second. Acosta barely got back to third safely with Wieners chasing her, but umpires ruled Bombard out because she never stepped back on third in her attempts to return to second base. Now with runners on the corners and two out, Wheeler struck out Erin Coughlin to end the inning.
In the seventh, Marlborough threatened again. Victoria Falco opened by singling to right. A steal and wild pitch moved the junior to third with two out, representing the tying run. But Wheeler got Erin Coughlin to ground out to end the game.
The Panthers jumped on Wheeler for a run in the first after Wieners threw the ball into center field trying to nail Bombard, who was stealing. Marissa Flynn, who reached on an error to start the game, scored easily.
The Brownies, after having trouble with Marlborough pitcher Molly McGuire early, finally got to the hard-throwing senior in the third. A Panther error and a Paige Circosta single put runners at the corners. Wieners then atoned for her earlier mistake by ripping an RBI single to left to tie things at 1-1. Taylor Marcotte followed with a ground ball to second. Flynn, Marlborough's second baseman, tried to go the easy route and throw out pinch-runner Jess Lingenburg streaking toward second. But Flynn's throw was off the mark and went into the outfield allowing Circosta to score the go-ahead run.
"We were able to get out of some tight jams because Allison hit her spots when she needed to," Wieners said. "She missed a couple of times but she really battled through it. Her mental toughness got us through this game. It's all about heart and our ability to manufacture runs when we needed to and do what it takes to get it done."
Marlboro, which finished with nine hits, will come away from this affair knowing the chances it left on the base paths, especially in the fourth and seventh innings. The Panthers also saw another chance to add runs snuffed out in the second. Again with runners on second and third and two out, Flynn smashed a hard grounder just to the right of second base. But Marcotte, Agawam's second baseman, dove to snare the ball and managed to throw out Flynn from her backside by a half step.
"Overall I thought we hit the ball well but just didn't get the clutch hits tonight," said Marlborough head coach Kyle Westcott. "We got a lot of runners on but didn't score when we needed to. It was an unbelievable season. No Marlboro softball team had ever won a district championship prior to this year. It was an amazing group and I'm proud of all of them."


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Oscar-Winner Philip Seymour Hoffman Dead at 46
Philip Seymour Hoffman, a towering icon of modern cinema, was found dead in his Manhattan apartment today according to the Wall Street Journal and New York Post. He was 46 years old.
Philip Seymour Hoffman, a towering icon of modern cinema, was found dead in his Manhattan apartment today according to the Wall Street Journal and New York Post. He was 46 years old.
We'll see you in the Twittersphere on Sunday at 7:00PM for music's biggest night!
It's the biggest movie ever shot in New York City! "The Amazing Spider-Man 2", and here's your first look at the new movie. Blockbuster baby! Check out the first trailer by clicking "Read More" now.
Lufkin's Dave Fenley made it all the way to the semi-final round of America's Got Talent, but that great run came to an end Wednesday night.
After weeks, months, even years of speculation, Jimmy Fallon is officially set to take over 'The Tonight Show' from longtime host Jay Leno, moving production of the legendary NBC late-night series to New York in 2014. The speculation had reached a boiling point in recent weeks, with the NBC late-night comedians even playfully joking about the matter, before NBC officially decided to confirm the transition. So when can we expect 'The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon?' Find out the details of late night's future inside!
She might have struggled on 'Dancing With the Stars' this week, but Wynonna Judd has plenty to celebrate. Her husband and drummer, Cactus Moser, took his first steps on his own after losing his leg in a motorcycle accident last August.
When both Smokey Robinson and Aretha Franklin are on your side, you don't have much to worry about. That's the lesson soulful country singer Kree Harrison learned on Thursday night (March 28) on 'American Idol,' easily moving on to the next round of the reality singing competition after turning in a stellar version of Franklin's 'Don't Play That Song' on Wednesday night (March 27).
There's been no shortage of controversy following the 2013 Oscars, most of it dealing with host Seth MacFarlane's particular brand of comedy, which is either hilariously crude or mean-spirited and misogynistic, depending on who you ask. But with ratings higher than last year's ceremony (40.3 million people tuned in to watch 'Argo' win Best Picture), you'd wonder if the Academy would decide that further outcry was worth it and ask the 'Family Guy' creator back for a second time. However, MacFarlane himself preemptively answered that question on Twitter.
Dancing With The Stars 2013 cast has been announced! Some I know and some ...not so much! The ones I know and am excited about?
Aw, the Oscars! Did you watch it? What was your favorite part? What did you think of Seth MacFarlane's job at hosting the show?
Her name is Carmen Dell'Orefice and she is a high in demand supermodel from New York.
She is svelte, graceful, and she has the picture-perfect sculpted cheek bones that most women would die for...oh, and she is 81 years old.
Are there zombies among us? The very popular and award winning AMC show The Walking Dead has been bring zombies into living rooms weekly. That is until Dish Network dropped them.


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Obituaries Archive
Jay Cee Dale, 28
Jay Cee Aarron Dale, 28, of Batavia Township, passed away Monday, November 16, 2015. He was born December 19, 1986 in Cincinnati, son of Joseph A. (Crystal O'Neal) Dale and Juanita Oliver Dale of Hollywood, FL. Jay was an Airman in the United States Air Force where he served a 6-month term in Afghanistan. He [ Read More ]
Donald Daugherty, 69
Daugherty, Donald L. – Beloved husband of Brenda Daugherty; father of Kimberly Daugherty, Tina Holtman and Brian Daugherty; grandfather of Nichole and Tommy Holtman, Jenny and Kimmy Daugherty; loving brother of Pam (Mike) Campbell. Preceded in death by his parents, Lloyd and Shirley Daugherty; Passed away Sunday, November 15, 2015 age 69 years; Resident of [ Read More ]
Anita Friedman, 77
Anita "Madge" Friedman (nee Sexton). age 77, of Batavia, passed away on Wednesday November 18, 2015.She is preceded in death by her father, Adrian Sexton, and husbands Dale Hallsted and Dr Alvin Friedman. She is survived by her daughters Gayle (Don) Burroughs, and Lisa Kuzniczci; grandchildren Kristin (Matt) Sampsel and Kevin Burroughs; great-grandson Eli Burroughs; [ Read More ]
Susan Itschner, 64
Susan J. (nee Haney), wife of the late Michael Itschner, mother of David Shenefelt (Rebecca), Mark Shenefelt, Louella Shenefelt-Harris and Ralph Kevin Itschner, grandmother of 11 grandchildren, sister of Linda Urschel, Barbara Haney, Janet Swann, Daniel Haney, Carol Majewski and Bill Haney. Susan, a resident of Cincinnati, passed away October 25, 2015 at the age [ Read More ]
Daniel Kruse, 60
Daniel T., husband of the late Patricia Kruse (nee Tallman). Father of Shauna Kruse, Melissa (Steve) Lukemire, and Daniel Scott (Melissa) Kruse. Grandfather of Zachary Carpenter and Paige and Megan Kruse. Great-grandfather of Zara Carpenter. Brother of Jerry Kruse and the late Robert Kruse. Preceded in death by his parents Frank and Anne Kruse. Daniel, [ Read More ]
Lou Polk, 78
Lou Polk, devoted husband of Margie Polk (nee Bialorucki) for 45 years. Loving father of Debbie Reddington (Matthew), Debbie Mills (David), Rick Shaffer, Michael Shaffer, Rebecca Khankari (Raj) and the late Robert Shaffer. Proud grandfather of Kelly Pendleton (Scott), Tracey Wolford (Ian), Christina Littleton (Jason), Matthew Shaffer, Jessika Finney (Jason), Ricky Shaffer Jr., Michele McPherson [ Read More ]
Stephen Shoopman, 54
Stephen Ray Shoopman, Age 54, passed away Wednesday November 18, 2015 at the Bethesda North Hospital. He was born at Bergstrom Air Force Base in Austin, TX, March 25, 1961, to Raymond and Anna Shoopman. He is preceded in death by his grandparents, Donald and Hattie Shoopman of Whitley City, KY and Hurstle and Truey [ Read More ]
Jeannette Suter, 51
Jeannette M., Loving mother of Brooke Donley. Companion of Gary Donley. Daughter of Effie Suter and the late Lawrence Suter. Sister of Sandra Bradford (Patric), Donnie Suter (Cindy), Lawrence "Marvin" Suter (Donna), Patty Suter and Tim Suter (Tracey). Also survived by many nieces and nephews. Jeannette passed away on November 19, 2015 at the age [ Read More ]
George Thoroughman, 82
George Hillis Thoroughman beloved husband of the late Dorothy Mae (nee Parker) Thoroughman; loving father of Mary (Allen) Kreimer, Sue Ann Sears, and Sharon Thoroughman; grandfather of Kristina Marie Kreimer and James Allen Kreimer; dear brother of Juanita (David) Hyrne, Diane (James) Hill, James Thoroughman, and the late Orville Gayle Thoroughman; several nieces and nephews. [ Read More ]
William Walsh, 61
William "Bill" Dana Walsh, age 61 of Sardinia, Ohio passed away Monday, November 16, 2015 at his home surrounded by loved ones after a twelve year battle with Carcinoid Syndrome. He began his career with General Electric before transitioning to a prestigious tenure with Cincinnati Thermal Spray. Along the way, Bill made friends with everyone [ Read More ]


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Private sector employment in New York City rose by 98,500, or 2.7 percent, to 3,784,200 for the 12-month period ending June 2016. Jobs grew in educational and health services (+46,100), leisure and hospitality (+20,700), professional and business services (+13,700), information (+7,900), natural resources, mining and construction (+6,900), other services (+4,500), trade, transportation and utilities (+1,400), and manufacturing (+200). Financial activities shed 2,900 jobs. Government employment rose by 4,500.
The city's over-the-year picture remained positive, with every sector except financial activities adding jobs for the 12 months through June 2016. The city's over-the-year private sector growth rate (+2.7 percent) was above the comparable rate for the state (+1.5 percent) and the nation (+2.0 percent).
The city's seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 5.0 percent in June 2016, down 0.1 of a point from May and 0.5 of a percentage point compared to a year ago. New York State's rate was 4.7 percent in June 2016. The share of the city's working-age population (16+) who were employed was 57.2 percent in June 2016. The number of City residents with jobs was essentially flat between June 2015 and June 2016.
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ESPN "Leaving no opening for the possibility of a quarterback controversy, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick commented publicly for the first time on Tom Brady serving a four-game suspension to open the season. "We had, finally, some definition with Tom's situation, so our priority now is to..." July 27
USA Today "Heading into training camps, all 32 NFL teams have essentially taken shape. So before injuries, benchings, firings, (more) suspensions and hot streaks start shaping the 2016 season, here's USA TODAY Sports' annual projection of how the season will unfold with record projections for each team based..." July 27
The Score "The New England Patriots will open their training camp with several key members of their starting offense physically unable to perform. Receivers Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola, running back Dion Lewis, tight end Clay Harbor, and offensive linemen Tre' Jackson and Sebastian Vollmer have all..." July 26
TMZ "Another New England Patriots star ... dating ANOTHER smokin' hot supermodel. This time, it's wide receiver Julian Edelman and Victoria's Secret Angel Adriana Lima. Sources close to the two tell us ... they met at the beginning of the month in Miami through mutual friends and have been out..." July 25
Boston Herald "Along with wondering how the Patriots are going to fare without Tom Brady during the first four games of the season, there's been a lot of discussion during the past week about how No. 12 will be able to stay in the loop, not to mention keep his sanity, during his suspension. After all, Brady..." July 24
Pro Football Talk "We may see a rusty Tom Brady in Week Five. Brady is suspended for the first four games of the season over Deflategate, so he's scheduled to make his regular season debut in Week Five against the Browns. Quarterbacks regularly miss time with injuries and then return to the field without any..." July 24
247 Sports "The last time Rob Gronkowski caught a touchdown pass from Jimmy Garoppolo, the New England Patriots were trailing the Kansas City Chiefs by 34 points in September of 2014. Garoppolo, then a rookie second-round pick, has yet to throw another in regular-season play. But that'll soon change when..." July 23
The Score "Tom Brady or not, the Arizona Cardinals just want a win. Carson Palmer backed up teammate Calais Campbell's previous comments stating that their team is more concerned about picking up a 'W' in their season opener than claiming bragging rights over Brady. "Yes, to an extent (I would like to..." July 23
Pro Football Talk "Patriots coach Bill Belichick has assembled the least diverse staff of any head coach in the NFL, according to an ESPN study of diversity in NFL coaching. Belichick's staff of 14 coaches includes just two minorities, meaning the Patriots have the NFL's least diverse staff, according to ESPN...." July 22
Arkansas Online "A suspected brain injury from 14 years of playing football, a positive attitude and the support of a treatment center director led a federal judge to impose a no-prison sentence Thursday for former Arkansas Razorback Cedric Cobbs. Cobbs, 35, who left Arkansas in 2004 to join the National..." July 22
Boston Herald "Convicted murderer Aaron Hernandez and his new defense dream team will make their first public appearance together at a hearing this afternoon in Plymouth Superior Court. The proceeding is expected to address defense motions pertaining to double-homicide charges Hernandez, 26, has pending in..." July 21
ESPN "The New England Patriots open training camp July 28 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Here's a closer look at the Patriots' camp, which wraps up in mid- to late August: Top storyline: Can third-year quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo keep things afloat in season-opening games at..." July 20
Pats Pulpit "Our friends over at Bleeding Green Nation decided to figure out the average height and weight of NFL rosters around the league and the takeaway is pretty great. The Patriots have the shortest roster in the league with an average height of 73.63 inches, or a hair taller than 6'1 1/2. Despite..." July 20
Uproxx "The true toll that playing football takes on the brain has come into focus over the last several years. We've reached a point where even the NFL is saying that playing can cause irreparable brain damage (Tell the truth! Tell the truth!), so it's clear that America will need to reckon with the..." July 20
Sportsnaut "One of the biggest question marks for the New England Patriots heading into training camp is just how the running back situation is going to play out. Last year's breakout star Dion Lewis missed the final nine games of the season after suffering a torn ACL. This came after he put up 622 total..." July 20
Yahoo! Sports "This time one year ago, the NFL at large barely knew Brock Osweiler. Buried behind the Denver Broncos' Peyton Manning, his draft dossier was collecting dust in opposing personnel departments, slowly decaying until an unexpected break changed everything. But a few solid games and timing carried..." July 20
Pittsburgh Tribune Review "After a season in which DeAngelo Williams injured his foot two quarters before the start of the playoffs and was relegated to watching the banged-up Steelers come within minutes of the AFC championship game, it's difficult for the veteran running back to feel sorry about any player or any team..." July 20
SB Nation "In its statement Friday, the NFLPA indicated it could still continue to pursue DeflateGate all the way to the Supreme Court. "We will continue to review all of our options and we reserve our rights to petition for cert to the Supreme Court," the union said. Brady has also reportedly authorized..." July 19
Sporting News "The number of minority coaches and assistants in the NFL has flatlined to an incredibly low number, ESPN.com reports. In the past five years, 22 new coaches have been hired, with Todd Bowles being the only minority coach hired despite the parameters set by the Rooney Rule in 2003. Former NFL..." July 19
CBS Sports "Even after two years of tedious debate over whether or not Tom Brady and the Patriots could have masterminded a plot to mildly deflate some footballs, the NFL does not plan to use microchips installed in footballs to track PSI numbers. The NFL is putting microchips in footballs, though. The..." July 19
CBS Sports "Some good news in regards to the constantly confusing catch-rule emerged Monday: NFL officials finally received a simpler way to rule on passes that result in unclear outcomes. Some bad news, however, also surfaced: More incomplete passes might be coming this season. As ESPN's Kevin Seifert..." July 18
Boston "Randy Moss, an electrifying and sometimes controversial wide receiver for 14 NFL seasons, including three-plus for the Patriots, is joining ESPN as an NFL analyst. The network confirmed via press release Monday that it had hired Moss, who spent the past three years in a similar if lower profile..." July 18
USA Today "In an appearance on Mike & Mike last week, Mark Wahlberg claimed that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell took time out of fighting with Tom Brady in court and the other things he does as the NFL Commissioner to call and complain about HBO's Ballers, which uses a number of storylines from the league..." July 18
ESPN "New England Patriots safety Nate Ebner has become the only active NFL player to qualify for the Rio Olympics and will represent USA Rugby. USA Rugby Men's Sevens coach Mike Friday announced the 12 athletes and his seven staff to represent Team USA on Monday. Ebner took a leave of absence..." July 18
CBS Sports "During Randy Moss' NFL career, in which he caught 982 passes for 15,292 yards and 156 touchdowns, he openly admitted to smoking marijuana. So, it should come as no surprise to hear Moss, who hasn't played since the 2012 season, rail against the league's marijuana policy. When speaking with..." July 18
CSN New England "Boston sports and rock and roll collided at Fenway Park on Sunday night when Paul McCartney played a sold out concert at the legendary ballpark. Before performing the song "Helter Skelter," McCartney had a surprise for the crowd in the form of New England Patriots tight end Rob..." July 18
The Score "New England Patriots receiver Julian Edelman says his surgically repaired foot continues to improve on a daily basis as training camp nears. "I'm feeling a day better than yesterday, and I'm feeling a second better than the last second," Edelman said at his youth football camp this week,..." July 17
ESPN "One closely watched storyline early in Patriots training camp will be how the four-game suspension for quarterback Tom Brady affects Bill Belichick's practice plans at quarterback, and there's a strong chance it will mostly be the status quo. Belichick annually says training camp is about..." July 17
Boston Herald "As campers whizzed around the field in a sea of white shirts, Julian Edelman stood at the 50-yard line dressed in a red hat and T-shirt. While he served as signal caller for the day at his youth football camp, the Patriots wide receiver was less eager to talk about the guys that will be wearing..." July 17
NESN "Robert Kraft isn't happy, but he also knows it's time to move on and get ready for the 2016 season. The New England Patriots owner wasted little time issuing a statement Friday afternoon after Patriots quarterback Tom Brady announced he was giving up his fight and accepting his four-game..." July 15
Sporting News "The customer is not always right, as those who work or have worked in the service industry know. Riddell Inc., America's largest football helmet distributor and official provider for the NFL from 1989-2014, is dealing with some unhappy customers who are both right and wrong. Former Pro Bowl..." July 15
wmtw.com "Tom Brady will not appeal his four-game suspension to the U.S. Supreme Court. A federal appeals court this week rejected the New England Patriots quarterback's latest attempt to overturn his "Deflategate" suspension." July 15
The Score "New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has accepted his four-game suspension, but it won't cost him nearly as much as it would have last season. After being granted a stay for the 2015 season, Brady renegotiated his contract so that he would save nearly $2 million while serving his..." July 15
ESPN "It happened so quickly that it would have been easy to overlook, which is the way a lot of things unfold with the New England Patriots' fast-paced offense. It was no-huddle work at practice, players aligning quickly, running the play, and then hustling back for the next one. The purpose seemed..." July 15
College Spun "Bill Simmons fired another shot at his former employer this morning. The now-HBO personality is accusing the NFL of leaking anti-Tom Brady news to ESPN employees during the Deflategate saga. Simmons is specifically claiming that top ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith is one of these..." July 14
Sportsnaut "Roger Goodell has irked the NFLPA with his actions during this current term for the Collective Bargaining Agreement. While the agreement runs through 2021, issues are already popping up as hot topics for the upcoming NFL CBA, set to be negotiated in five years. Bill Polian suggests that the..." July 14
CSN New England "In response to the Second Circuit's determination not to rehear Tom Brady's case against the NFL, the NFLPA has released a statement saying that it is "disappointed" in the decision. From the players' union: The NFL Players Association is a labor Union that protects the rights of all of its..." July 13
Pro Football Talk "There's still a chance that an appeal to the Supreme Court will work out for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, but the prospect that he'll miss the first four games of the season became likelier with Wednesday's decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to reject his request for a..." July 13
USA Today "Jimmy Garoppolo has never started an NFL game. Half of his 20 career completions came in a meaningless Week 17 game in 2014. His lone touchdown pass occurred in garbage time on a night when his New England Patriots were blown out 41-14. But when it comes to preparations for temporarily..." July 13
New York Daily News "Tom Brady is down to one last Hail Mary in his battle to overturn his Deflategate suspension. The second circuit court of appeals has denied the Patriots quarterback's request for a rehearing, according to multiple reports. His only option if he wants to continue his fight against Roger Goodell..." July 13
The Score "New England Patriots fans have something else to brag about. A study conducted by Emory University professor Michael Lewis has Patriots fans ranked as the best in the NFL, followed by the Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers, and Philadelphia Eagles. The results of the study..." July 12
Boston "There's been roughly three years of radio silence between Wes Welker and Bill Belichick. On 98.5 The Sports Hub's "Toucher and Rich Show" on Tuesday, the hosts asked Welker when he last spoke to the Patriots head coach, and at first, he struggled to remember. "I spoke with him probably right..." July 12
The Score "Every fantasy owner wants to discover the star player no one saw coming. It gives you bragging rights over the competition and puts you in position to make a run at the title. With only a few weeks left until players report to training camp, let's take a look at this year's breakout..." July 11
Pro Football Talk "On May 23, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady requested a rehearing of the appeal that reinstated his four-game suspension arising from #DeflateGate. Nearly seven weeks later, there hasn't been a peep from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in response to the petition and a flurry of..." July 11
Deadspin "The NFL published its updated 2016 rulebook this week, and here's a list of some of the bigger changes. But c'mon, we all want to see what the ever-evolving, always-baffling catch rule looks like now, so we can pretend we have any idea what we're talking about when there's a catch..." July 07
NESN "Ben Affleck said exactly what Rob Gronkowski couldn't. The actor and director appeared on Bill Simmons' HBO show "Any Given Wednesday" recently and spoke about the NFL's handling of Deflategate and Tom Brady's four-game suspension for it in a tirade that included 18 F-bombs. And Gronkowski thinks..." July 07
CSN New England "The bromance between Tom Brady and Julian Edelman is well-documented, but at one point in time the admiration between the pair was more of a one-way street. Edelman did an interview for the July issue of August Man Magazine, via Only in Boston, in which he described his long-ago, long-distance..." July 07
Pats Pulpit "New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler is already a legend. He made the single most impactful play in NFL history with his goal line interception in Super Bowl XLIX and followed it up with a Pro Bowl season as a starting cornerback. Butler will become a restricted free agent after the..." July 05
Pro Football Talk "Tom Brady now has something in common with Mike Ditka. Despite being close to presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump, the Patriots quarterback will not appear at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland later this month, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. That Brady's steering..." July 05
The Score "The New England Patriots have found a way under Tom Brady to generate a successful passing game every season, regardless of the size of their receivers. With the exceptions of Rob Gronkowski and Randy Moss, smaller receivers like Danny Amendola, Julian Edelman, Troy Brown, Wes Welker, and Deion..." July 03