Introducing Improved QBH Fiber Optic Cables for High Power Laser Beam Delivery
An advanced design featuring indirect water cooling enables high reliability at power levels up to 15 kW.
November 29, 2021 by Coherent
Coherent is pleased to debut a new series of QBH connectorized beam delivery fibers. These feature an advanced, indirect water-cooling design which increases their maximum power rating to 15 kW (when used with infrared fiber lasers). Plus, the use of indirect cooling – where the cooling water never actually contacts the fiber directly – relaxes the requirement on cooling water quality. This simplifies their use in locations with poor water quality.
The QBH fiber optic cable is the most widely utilized fiber interface for industrial high-power fiber lasers. It’s a well-proven standard, compatible with most available tools worldwide. The introduction of this new, innovative water-cooling design enables its use with higher-power near-infrared fiber lasers, and both near-infrared and visible-wavelength high-power diode laser sources.
In addition to advanced water cooling, Coherent QBH fiber optic cables also incorporate a mode stripper which removes unwanted pump light, laser light which may have been coupled into the cladding by misalignment, or back-reflected light from the process. The mode stripper yields a higher-quality beam which can be concentrated more effectively on the work surface. An integrated quartz block in the connector further extends the high-power handling capacity of these cables; these can be antireflection coated for commonly used wavelengths in the visible and near-infrared.
Finally, Coherent QBH fiber optic cables are Kevlar reinforced, making them extremely durable, without sacrificing flexibility. This makes them an ideal choice for robotic applications.
Learn more about Coherent QBH fiber optic cables.
Related Resources
