OPTICS | ENGINEERING

October 2010 | 11
I
n December 2009, we purchased three
10 mW green laser pointers for $15
each. Measurements of the broadband
output power from one laser showed that
it emitted at least ten times more invisible
infrared light than visible green light.
Tis is a serious hazard, since infrared
light can cause signicant eye damage in
humans and animals before the observer
is aware of exposure. After several tests,
we found that this problem is common in
inexpensive green laser pointers, though
its seriousness varies widely.
Principles of operation
Twenty years ago, 10 mW of coherent
green light could be obtained only from
research-laboratory-grade lasers that
cost over $100,000 and occupied a lab
green laser was each, at its time, a high-
light of laser technology. Tey include:
c
A semiconductor pump diode laser
operating at 808 nm
c
A neodymium-ion oscillator that
emits 1,064-nm light
c
A frequency-doubling crystal that
generates light at a wavelength that is
half that of the oscillator, producing
the familiar 532-nm green light.
Today, all three components are inex-
pensively integrated and manufactured at
high volume.
Lasers that emit 10 mW of green
light are rated as Class IIIb devices
capable of causing serious eye damage.
However, there is little documented data
table. Todays green laser pointers deliver
similar performance for less than $20 in
a cigar-sized package that is powered by
two 1.5-volt cells.
Te three elements that are essential
to the operation of this common type of
Infrared light can cause
signicant eye damage
in humans and animals
before the observer is
aware of exposure.
Inexpensive green laser pointers can emit 20 mW of unspecied infrared radiation in
addition to their green output. The problem derives from an unsafe design. This article
describes a simple diagnostic method to identify hazardous pointers by using a digital
camera, a Web camera, a remote control and a compact disc.
A for
Pointers
Jemellie Galang, Alessandro Restelli, Edward W. Hagley and Charles W. Clark
Thinkstock
www.osa-opn.org
OPTICS | ENGINEERING
12 | OPN Optics & Photonics News
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Wavelength [nm]
Response to wavelength of the green laser pointer line at 532 nm, and the 650 nm
wavelength of a typical red laser pointer. The blue curve shows the perceived bright-
ness from a source of the same intensity. A 5-mW green pointer would appear as
bright as a 41.3-mW red laser.
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
[ Human visual response to laser pointers ]
on eye injuries actually caused by laser
exposure. Light from a green pointer is
emitted at a wavelength to which the
human eye is very sensitive. Green lasers
therefore appear far brighter than red
lasers of the same optical power. Tus,
green laser pointers are usually preferred
in low visibility situations such as a large
auditorium. Direct ocular exposure to
visible lasers is relatively rare, because
the blink reex protects the eye from
extremely luminous light.
Hidden hazards
To produce a green laser beam, one must
have intense invisible infrared light. In
properly constructed green laser pointers,
IR radiation is blocked from emission
by an IR lter. However, due to design
or manufacturing faults, IR radiation
may not be blocked. Being invisible, IR
light does not activate the blink reex.
Tus, a considerable dose of IR radia-
tion can enter the eye and cause retinal
damage. Invisible IR and UV lasers are
the most frequently reported sources of
laser-induced eye injuries, some causing
permanent damage to vision. A survey of
100 accidental, non-medical laser-induced
Measured power spectrum of the laser
under test, showing the ratios of the
measured power of each laser line to
the measured power of the green line
at 532 nm.
eye injuries reported in the scientic
literature up to 1999 found that lasers
with wavelengths near 1,064 nm were
implicated in 49 percent of all cases,
while 532-nm light accounted for only
7 percent (International Ophthalmology
Clinics 39, 13).
Te main danger associated with green
laser pointers arises from low conversion
eciency from infrared to visible radia-
tion due to a manufacturing aw. Nor-
mally, if the conversion eciency is high,
the inter-cavity infrared power will be low
because conversion to green light draws
down the power of the infrared. However,
if the conversion eciency is low, then the
inter-cavity infrared power can build up
to high levels, resulting in strong infra-
red emission. In the extreme case of zero
conversion eciency, it would be possible
for the green laser pointer to emit intense
infrared light but no visible green light.
Tis is why the infrared-blocking lter
is absolutely necessary in any safe green
pointer design.
We purchased a laser pointer that
emitted IR light nearly ten times more
powerful than its green emission. Tis
was due to both low infrared-to-green
conversion eciency and the absence of
an infrared-blocking lter. Te total emit-
ted power as measured with a broadband
thermal detector was 20 mW. It is danger-
ous for such intensities of infrared light
to propagate uncontrolled. For example,
modern buildings have IR-reective win-
dow coatings to reduce thermal heating of
the interior. If an unltered green pointer
is directed on such a window, green light
is transmitted, but the infrared is reected.
A signicant hazard is posed here because
the green light is no longer directed along
the same path as the infrared, and a
viewers blink reex may not activate.
A simple test
Inexpensive green laser pointers are pro-
duced in vast quantities, and few carry
obvious manufacturers marks. Wide-
spread production is likely accompanied
by diverse adherence to practices of qual-
ity control. Tese controls failed in the
example at hand, resulting in the release
of a laser that leaked infrared radiation.
A simple test can detect infrared
leakage using a common digital camera
(e.g., point-and-shoot or SLR), a CD,
a Web camera, and a remote control.
A CD is used as a diraction grating,
making this test an elementary exercise
in spectroscopy.
Wavelength [nm]
300 350 400 450 500 550 600 650 700 750 800
Data from the 1931 report of the International Commission on Illumination (CIE).
10
8
6
4
2
0
[ Spectral output ]
400 500 600 700 800 900 1,000 1,100 1,200
October 2010 | 13
We used a digital camera, usually sen-
sitive only to visible light, to photograph
the green diraction pattern. Inexpensive
Web cameras are usually sensitive to
both visible and infrared radiation. A
remote control can then be used to deter-
mine if the Web camera is IR-sensitive
(if it is not, it can be modied). Te Web
camera is used to photograph the IR
diraction pattern. Comparing images
acquired by the digital and Web cameras
determines the presence of IR light in
the green laser output.
Te Web cam shows intense dirac-
tion spots that are not visible to the eye.
diracted (), the wavelength of the
observed IR light is calculated to cor-
respond to the 808-nm IR wavelength of
the pump light. Web camera sensitivity
likely cuts o near 1,064 nm, so dirac-
tion at this wavelength is not evident. If
present, 1,064-nm rst-order diraction
spots would overlap the second-order
spots of 532 nm.
Origin of the hazard
After studying the light emitted by this
faulty green laser pointer, we disassembled
it to diagnose the origin of the problem.
No infrared blocking lter was found in
this device. Inspection of the assembly
suggested that the manufacturer had not
incorporated a holder for such a lter. We
believe that the absence of the lter in this
case was due to a design decision. t
Tis manuscript is based on NIST Technical
Note 1669, A Green Laser Pointer Hazard,
July 2010, by Jemellie Galang, Alessandro
Restelli, Edward W. Hagley and Charles W.
Clark and is published with permission from
the authors and NIST.
Jemellie Galang (jemellie.galang@nist.gov), Ales-
sandro Restelli and Charles W. Clark are with the
Joint Quantum Institute, National Institute of Stan-
dards and Technology and University of Maryland,
Gaithersburg, Md., U.S.A. Hagley is also afliated
with Acadia Optronics in Rockville, Md., U.S.A.
Tese are due to 808-nm infrared light
as calculated below. Te infrared spots
exhibit greater divergence than the green.
IR light spreads out beyond the green.
Tis could be harmful. For example, it
could injure a cat that was closely chas-
ing a spot of green light.
Te grating spacing is dened by the
CD grooves, which are separated by
d = 1.6 m. Using the grating equation,
sin = m/d
along with the observed orders (m) and
calculated angles to which the light is
[ References and Resources ]
>> R. Stevenson. Lasers get the green
light, IEEE Spectrum 47(3), 34-9 (March
2010).
>> P. Corke. Machine vision toolbox, P.
Corke, IEEE Robotics and Automation
Magazine 12(4), 1625 (2005).
>> K. Barat. Laser Safety Management,
CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fla., U.S.A.,
2006), sec. 9.20; Ocular Radiation
Hazards, David H. Sliney, in Handbook
of Optics, Third Edition, Vol. III: Vision
and Vision Optics, ed. Michael Bass et al.
(McGraw Hill, N.Y., U.S.A., 2010).
>> A.B. Thatch. Laser injuries of the eye,
International Ophthalmology Clinics
39(2), 13 (1999).
>> C. Palmer. Diffraction Grating Handbook,
Sixth Edition, Newport Corporation,
Rochester, N.Y., U.S.A. 2005.
>> Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21,
Volume 8, Chapter I, Subchapter J, Part
1040, Sec. 1040.10: Laser products
(revised as of April 1, 2009).
ONLINE EXTRA: Visit www.osa-opn.org for more information about laser pointer safety.
(Top) Digital photo of diffraction of green laser light, from the vantage point of the camera
shown in previous fgure. (Laser in the foreground.) Yellow lines are aligned with the
green diffraction spots corresponding to zero-, frst-, and second-order diffraction. (Bot-
tom) The same vignette, as captured by a Web camera without an infrared-blocking flter.
[ Experimental setup ]
[ Diffraction pattern ]
Setup for determining whether infrared radiation is emitted by a green laser pointer.
The laser passes through a hole in the paper and is diffracted by the CD on the left.
Five green diffraction spots are visible on the paper.
Paper screen
Bare patch
Transmission hole
Green laser pointer
Modifed web cam
Black mask CD
m = 2 m = -1 m = 0 m = 1 m = 2