Lasers and optics

Drivers for lasers and optical measurement: Cobolt, Toptica, Sirah Matisse, M² Solstis, HighFinesse wavemeters.

Overview

Quatm supports diode lasers, pump lasers, tunable ring lasers and optical measurement instruments. Laser-type devices are controlled over serial ports; SCPI instruments inherit the standard interface.

Hubner Cobolt MLD / DPL single-frequency lasers

Cobolt 06-01 series Hubner Cobolt
Communicationserial (115200 baud)
Wavelength405/445/488/515/532/561/594/633/660/780/1064 nm
Power25–300 mW
Modulationanalog + digital TTL (up to 5 MHz)
Compact DPSS/diode lasers for ion/atom cooling light, repump light and fluorescence excitation.
Driver module: Cobolt
from quatm.drivers.Hubner.Cobolt import Cobolt

laser = Cobolt(conn="/dev/ttyUSB0")

# Turn on the laser
laser.set_autostart(True)
laser.set_power(50e-3)         # 50 mW

# Digital modulation (TTL)
laser.set_digital_modulation(True)
laser.set_modulation_power(100e-3)  # High power during modulation

# Read operating parameters
hours = laser.get_operating_hours()
temp = laser.get_base_temperature()

Toptica iBeam smart diode lasers

iBeam series Toptica
Communicationserial (115200 baud)
Wavelength375–1550 nm
Smart laser heads with a built-in controller, supporting automatic current/power calibration and status diagnostics.
Driver module: TopticaIBeam
from quatm.drivers.Toptica.ibeam import TopticaIBeam

laser = TopticaIBeam(conn="/dev/ttyUSB0")
laser.set_power(channel=0, power=10e-3)
laser.enable(channel=0, enable=True)

Laser Quantum Finesse pump laser

Finesse Laser Quantum
Communicationserial (19200 baud)
Power4–16 W (532 nm)
Noise< 0.1% RMS
ApplicationTi:sapphire/dye laser pumping
An ultra-low-noise continuous-wave DPSS laser used to pump tunable ring lasers such as the Sirah Matisse.
Driver module: Finesse
from quatm.drivers.LaserQuantum.base import Finesse

pump = Finesse(conn="/dev/ttyUSB0")
pump.set_power(10.0)           # 10 W
pump.enable(True)
actual_power = pump.get_power()

Lighthouse Photonics Sprout G

Sprout G Lighthouse Photonics
Communicationserial (19200 baud)
Wavelength532 nm
Power6–18 W
Noise< 0.2% RMS
A high-power 532 nm solid-state pump laser for Ti:sapphire lasers and optical dipole traps.
Driver module: SproutG
from quatm.drivers.LighthousePhotonics.base import SproutG

sprout = SproutG(conn="/dev/ttyUSB0")
sprout.set_power(15.0)
sprout.enable(True)

Sirah Matisse tunable ring laser

Matisse Sirah Lasertechnik
CommunicationVISA or TCP/IP
Wavelength rangevisible–near-infrared (depends on dye/Ti:sapphire)
Linewidth< 50 kHz (locked)
Tuning elementsbirefringent filter + thin/thick etalon + piezo
A precision tunable ring laser system. MatisseTuner coordinates the laser with a HighFinesse wavemeter to provide automatic wavelength tuning and stitched scans.
Driver module: SirahMatisse / MatisseTuner
from quatm.drivers.Sirah.Matisse import SirahMatisse

matisse = SirahMatisse(addr="TCPIP::192.168.1.10::INSTR")

# Set wavelength
matisse.set_birefringent_filter(wavelength=780.24)  # nm
matisse.set_thin_etalon(wavelength=780.24)
matisse.set_thick_etalon(wavelength=780.24)

# Piezo scan
matisse.set_piezo_voltage(50.0)   # 0–100 V

# Automatic tuning (requires a wavemeter)
from quatm.drivers.Sirah.tuner import MatisseTuner

tuner = MatisseTuner(laser=matisse, wavemeter=wlm)
tuner.tune_to(wavelength=780.24)  # Auto-search and lock
tuner.scan(start=780.20, stop=780.30, speed=0.01)  # nm/s

M² Solstis narrow-linewidth tunable laser

Solstis M² Lasers
CommunicationTCP/IP JSON + WebSocket
Wavelength range700–1000 nm (Ti:sapphire)
Linewidth< 50 kHz
Functionsetalon lock, cavity reference lock, wavemeter feedback
A fully digital tunable laser system, completely remotely controllable through a TCP/IP JSON interface. It supports a WebSocket real-time status stream.
Driver module: Solstis (ICE Bloc)
from quatm.drivers.M2.solstis import Solstis

solstis = Solstis(addr="192.168.1.20", port=8080)

# Wavelength tuning
solstis.set_wavelength(780.24)
# Etalon lock
solstis.lock_etalon()
# Terahertz scan (with the EMM module)
solstis.set_terahertz_scan(start_freq=0, stop_freq=100e9)

Optical power meters & wavemeters

Ophir Vega laser power/energy meter

Vega Ophir
Communicationserial
Headsthermopile/photodiode/pyroelectric
PowerµW – kW
EnergyµJ – J
A versatile laser measurement instrument supporting continuous-wave power and pulsed energy measurement.
Driver module: VegaPowerMeter
from quatm.drivers.Ophir.base import VegaPowerMeter

pm = VegaPowerMeter(conn="/dev/ttyUSB0")
power = pm.get_power()

HighFinesse WS6/WS7 precision wavemeters

WS6 / WS7 HighFinesse
Communicationnative wlmData.dll
Accuracy2–200 MHz (depends on model)
Channels1–8
Measurement rateup to 500 Hz
Wavelength range350–1120 nm
Fizeau interferometer wavemeters for precision laser frequency measurement and feedback control. Multi-channel models can monitor the frequencies of several lasers simultaneously.
Driver module: WLM
from quatm.drivers.HighFinesse.wlm import WLM

wlm = WLM(version=7, dll_path="C:\\wlm\\wlmData.dll")

# Read the current frequency of channel 1
freq = wlm.get_frequency(channel=1)    # THz
wavelength = wlm.get_wavelength(channel=1)  # nm

# Exposure control (auto-adapts to light intensity)
wlm.set_exposure(channel=1, mode="auto")

Thorlabs optical power meters PM100 / PM400

PM100 / PM400 series Thorlabs power meter
CommunicationVISA (USB)
Supported headsphotodiode/thermopile/pyroelectric
Wavelength rangedepends on head
Power rangenW – W level
Communicates with Thorlabs power meter heads over SCPI commands and supports a variety of sensor head types.
Driver module: GenericPM
from quatm.drivers.Thorlabs.misc import GenericPM
pm = GenericPM(addr="USB0::0x1313::0x8078::P1234567::INSTR")
pm.set_wavelength(780.0)    # 780 nm calibration
power = pm.get_power()      # Current power (W)