I feel very old when I look back and remember how you could only get red wimpy little LEDs "a few" years back .
The high power LEDs you can get so cheaply now are really quite phenomenal (off the scale almost for the old laser class XX markings), but the thought always strikes, me; isn't there some simple efficient way to collimate the light from one or more such LEDs, so you can then focus it down, and use it like a laser?
Lasers are a bit too perfect for cutting and welding etc, not very efficient, and all your really making use of is the parallel nature of the beam, the coherence, monochromaticity etc are really overkill. Indeed the monochromaticity really ruins the efficiency when "pumping" the laser with another light source.
I keep thinking along the lines of a parabolic reflector, or a light guide, but they're both a bit messy and would have questionable efficiency.. so... any bright ideas folks?
The high power LEDs you can get so cheaply now are really quite phenomenal (off the scale almost for the old laser class XX markings), but the thought always strikes, me; isn't there some simple efficient way to collimate the light from one or more such LEDs, so you can then focus it down, and use it like a laser?
Lasers are a bit too perfect for cutting and welding etc, not very efficient, and all your really making use of is the parallel nature of the beam, the coherence, monochromaticity etc are really overkill. Indeed the monochromaticity really ruins the efficiency when "pumping" the laser with another light source.
I keep thinking along the lines of a parabolic reflector, or a light guide, but they're both a bit messy and would have questionable efficiency.. so... any bright ideas folks?