Experimental analysis of the industrial 1-kW CO2 laser beam properties

A diagnostic scanning instrument developed in IFFM provides a view of the laser beam profiles and allows for the analysis of the factors influencing the beam quality. The method of measurements and their results concerning the 1.2 kW CO2 industrial laser beam propagation characteristics are presented in the paper. The experimental power density distributions of focused and unfocused beams are analyzed. From the beam caustic recorded under focused conditions the principal propagation beam parameters were estimated and compared with those determined by the knife-edge method.