Yellow and Orange Lasers
Author: the photonics expert Dr. Rüdiger Paschotta (RP)
Definition: lasers emitting yellow or orange light
More general term: visible lasers
Category: 
Page views in 12 months: 1165
DOI: 10.61835/9l3 Cite the article: BibTex plain textHTML Link to this page! LinkedIn
This article discusses laser sources emitting in the yellow to orange spectral region, i.e. with a wavelength roughly around 570–625 nm. This spectral region is relatively difficult to access, at least when high output power, beam quality and power efficiency are required. Nevertheless, various types of yellow and orange laser sources exist:
- InGaP-based laser diodes may emit orange light e.g. around 610 nm [1]. The shorter the wavelength, the more difficult it is to obtain a good power efficiency and long lifetime.
- Praseodymium/ytterbium-doped upconversion lasers, e.g. based on fluoride fibers, can emit orange light with wavelengths around 605 nm [2].
- Dye lasers can cover the whole yellow–orange spectral region.
- helium–neon lasers can utilize an orange laser transitions at 612 nm and 594.1 nm.
- Copper vapor lasers can emit pulses of yellow light at 578 nm [5].
- There are various types of frequency-doubled lasers, where the actual laser emits in the 1.1–1.2-μm spectral region and a frequency doubler converts this radiation into orange or yellow light. For example, a Cr4+:MgSiO4 (forsterite) laser can cover this spectral range [3]. There are also optically pumped semiconductor lasers (VECSELs) based on GaInNAs or InGaAs quantum wells, which can generate orange or yellow light via intracavity frequency doubling [7, 8].
- Some yellow or orange laser sources are based on sum frequency generation. For example, mixing the outputs of two Nd:YVO4 lasers emitting at 1064 nm and 1342 nm, respectively, results in orange light with 593.5 nm. There are even laser pointers containing such a source, but these are fairly expensive.
- Optical parametric oscillators may emit orange or yellow light, when pumped with a blue laser.
- There are Raman lasers, often based on Raman-active bulk crystals (e.g. tungstate crystals), which can either generate orange or yellow light from green pump light [4], or generate light with wavelengths around 1.1–1.2 μm with a 1-μm pump source [6], so that subsequent frequency doubling or sum frequency generation leads to orange or yellow light.
Orange and yellow laser sources are applied e.g. for laser guide stars (sodium laser beacons) and in medical laser therapies (e.g. photocoagulation in ophthalmology). Orange or even yellow laser pointers exist but are not common.
More to Learn
Suppliers
The RP Photonics Buyer's Guide contains 38 suppliers for yellow and orange lasers. Among them:
TOPTICA Photonics
Latest developments in semiconductor amplifier and frequency-doubling technology expand the color and power spectrum of tunable diode lasers to more than 1000 mW at yellow and orange wavelengths. Applications such as laser cooling of sodium, dysprosium or erbium and spectroscopy of rare-earth ions in solids benefit from the compact and easy-to-handle laser systems. Lasers can be used also for a variety of applications to study objects ranging from nanometer scale, via micro- or macroscopic size, even towards galaxies and the universe. For example, artificial guide stars are required to optimize the spatial resolution of Earth-based telescopes. These artificial stars can be created using TOPTICA's guide star laser SodiumStar. This system has been decorated with the Berthold Leibinger innovation price for Laser Research in 2016.
CNI Laser
CNI offers diode-pumped all-solid-state yellow and orange lasers with wavelengths from 577 nm to 604 nm. The output power is up to 25 W and the pulse energy up to 5 mJ. Single longitudinal mode, low noise, high stability, OEM versions are all available options.
Vexlum
VEXLUM offers VECSEL technology with intracavity frequency doubling, producing diffraction-limited, watt-level lasers across the yellow-orange spectral region (565–625 nm), which is very challenging for competing technologies. The lasers feature a wavelength tuning range of ±1 nm and a narrow linewidth, ideal for various applications:
Quantum technology:
- Yb clock (quadrupole, 578 nm / 2 W)
- Yb 2nd stage narrow cooling (555 nm / 2 W)
- Ba repumping (614 nm / 2 W)
Others:
- Sodium guide star laser at 589 nm
Edmund Optics
Edmund Optics offers yellow and orange lasers in the form of solid-state lasers from the Coherent OBIS™ series.
MPB Communications
MPBC is a pioneer in providing fiber lasers in the yellow and orange region, opening up applications for yellow and red fluorescent dyes.
Our design flexibility is such that we can offer any wavelength in this region, with output powers from 200 mW to 5 W. The lasers are air-cooled, available in either an OEM compact package, or a 2RU rack-mountable package with integrated power supply and are shipped with a user-friendly graphical user interface for ease of set up and operation. MPBC also offers optional fiber coupling.
Lumibird
The Lumibird CVFL-GIGA are frequency-converted ytterbium-doped fiber lasers emitting at a fixed design wavelength from 520 nm up to 590 nm.
HÜBNER Photonics
HÜBNER Photonics offer yellow and orange lasers in the Cobolt 04-01, 05-01 and 06-01 Series. Available wavelengths are 561 nm and 594 nm.
RPMC Lasers
Serving North America, RPMC Lasers offers a selection of yellow & orange output lasers, including pulsed DPSS, CW HeNe, and tunable pulsed types, with free-space or fiber-coupled output, ranging from OEM components to turnkey systems for various applications.
They deliver stable yellow wavelengths from 560–590 nm via matured DPSS tech, with options for power, energy, pulse width, and rep rate, ideal for fluorescence microscopy, DNA sequencing, and life sciences.
Optimized for scientific and industrial use, they offer excellent beam quality and stability for microscopy, spectroscopy, and sensitive fluorescence detection, with configurable platforms for easy integration.
Let RPMC help you find the right laser today!
Bibliography
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| [2] | P. Xie and T. R. Gosnell, “Room-temperature upconversion fiber laser tunable in the red, orange, green, and blue spectral regions”, Opt. Lett. 20 (9), 1014 (1995); https://doi.org/10.1364/OL.20.001014 |
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| [8] | M. Fallahi et al., “5-W yellow laser by intracavity frequency doubling of high-power vertical-external-cavity surface-emitting laser”, IEEE Photon. Technol. Lett. 20 (20), 1700 (2008); https://doi.org/10.1109/LPT.2008.2003413 |
| [9] | Z. Liu et al., “Self-frequency-doubled KTiOAsO4 Raman laser emitting at 573 nm”, Opt. Lett. 34 (14), 2183 (2009); https://doi.org/10.1364/OL.34.002183 |
| [10] | H. Zhu et al., “Yellow-light generation of 5.7 W by intracavity doubling self-Raman laser of YVO4/Nd:YVO4 composite”, Opt. Lett. 34 (18), 2763 (2009); https://doi.org/10.1364/OL.34.002763 |
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| [14] | D. Pabœuf et al., “Diode-pumped Pr:BaY2F8 continuous-wave orange laser”, Opt. Lett. 36 (2), 280 (2011); https://doi.org/10.1364/OL.36.000280 |
| [15] | E. Kantola et al., “High-efficiency 20 W yellow VECSEL”, Opt. Express 22 (6), 6372 (2014); https://doi.org/10.1364/OE.22.006372 |
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(Suggest additional literature!)
Questions and Comments from Users
2023-12-19
It looks like 561nm laser pointers have become available in the last year. I assume that they use laser diodes. However, searches for 561 nm laser diodes didn't yield any results.
The author's answer:
Indeed, 561-nm diode lasers seem not to be possible so far. There are two other approaches:
- There are diode-pumped solid-state Nd:YAG lasers operating at 1123 nm (a somewhat difficult transition) with subsequent frequency doubling to 561 nm.
- There are 1123-nm laser diodes. Simply using such a diode and adding a frequency doubler for converting the light to 561 nm would not be efficient, but there are AR-coated diodes for realizing external cavity lasers where a frequency doubler can be incorporated.
In both cases, this is sophisticated technology, which consistent with the relatively high prices.
2020-03-15
I saw a yellow beam of light as large as a soccer ball coming from a window from the house across the street where I live. What could be happening there?
The author's answer:
There are orange and yellow laser pointers, although they are not common. So I guess someone played around with such a device. Maybe the beam looked large due to the glare.