Optical transmission processes in a thermally driven protected multi-component device

A strategy for protecting and improving the performance of a nonlinear optical device exposed to a high-energy beam is numerically investigated. In this strategy, a thermally stimulated defocusing material is used in combination with a RSA material. To test this new approach, the ability of a CS2 cell dyed with a linear absorber material to protect a NLO device is deter-mined using calculated values of beam and aperture transmission and the temperature distribution in the NLO device. The results demonstrate that the strategy provides thermal protection and marginally reduces the aperture transmission. These current calculations suggests that other approaches, such as multi-cell devices, may be more effective at providing thermal protection and reducing beam transmission. However, this current approach needs further investigation at other linear transmissions and in addition might be combined with other approaches, such as multiple layers to provide enhanced protection.