Hi folks.
While saving up for my first laser (an 800mw green), I've got a few questions.
is there a particalar way the dicros need to face the lasers? I know they have to be roughly 45° to the incoming beams, but is there a "top" and "bottom" side to a dichro (e.g. like a playing card - the dealer would almost always lose if he dealt all the cards face side up in blackjack).
Is it sensible to fit a service mode switch inside the projector? By this I mean a switch that allows one to bypass the ilda input, and feed the lasers a low voltage modulation signal, for alignment. My take on this is the service mode switch, and 3 seperate switches (one for each laser), along with a button that has to be held down to make the selected laser(s) run). This rig would make the laser run at low power for alignment purposes. I would put the service mode switch near a case edge, so when the lid is closed, the switch is pressed back into normal mode by a projection inside the case.
I heard you dont need to connect the DT40W's ground connection, except at the power supply, to pin 25 on the ilda breakout board. Is this correct? I assume this is to avoid ground loops.
I have done most of my research, and picked out the lasers I want, and now know their beam heights, so can get some shims in the right thickness (0.8mm for the kvant red, none for the laserwave green, 2mm for the galvo block, and not sure for the blue as have not got info on the prism corrected 445nm diode). My tallest beam height is 29mm. DT40W's come in at 27mm.