HANDHELD BLUE (VIOLET-EMITTING) LASER MODULE
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Somebody set up us the bomb.

Handheld Blue (violet-emitting) Laser Module, retail $149.00
Manufactured by: (Unknown)
Last updated 06-04-09




(In reference to the small box I received from C. G. at 11:57am PDT on 03-23-09):
{sung like the Foreigner song "Feels Like the First Time"}


The Handheld "Blue" Laser Module is only the second commercial application of the much vaunted Blu-ray diode laser in a pointing device; this was the first, introduced in mid-2007.

The word "Blue" is in quotation marks, because this laser actually outputs radiation that I would call "violet"; measured spectrographically at 405.6nm. That's why I call it the "Handheld Blue (violet-emitting) Laser Module" on this website.

And the reason that I call it a "module" and not a "pointer" is because you cannot (by law) call a laser a "pointer" if its output power exceeds 4.99mW - this laser "module" clocks in at 15.50mW. Therefore, I cannot call it a "pointer" even if it looks like one, operates like one, and smells like one; I have to call it a "module", a "device", or even a "thing" - but calling this product a "Handheld Blue (violet-emitting) Laser Thing" just doesn't sound right...so "Module" it is.


SIZE



To get the laser to turn on, first be certain that there is are a pair of AAA cells installed. If there isn't, then install them (see directly below), and THEN you can go irradiate something.

Press & hold down the button on the barrel for as long as you want or need the laser spot, and release pressure on the button to turn the laser back off.



To change the batteries in this blue (violet) laser module, just unscrew the laser at the halfway point, and set the front half aside (***DO NOT*** huck it into a cave or an open-pit zinc or cobalt mine!!! ), dump the dead batteries into your hand, and drop them into the nearest garbage can - or the dead battery box, if your community has a battery reclamation program in place. Yes, some communities really *DO* have battery reclamation programs!!!

Insert two new AAA cells into the barrel, button-end (+) positive first. This is the opposite of how batteries are installed in most flashlights, so please pay attention to polarity here.

Screw the front half of the laser back on, and be done with it.
Aren't you glad you didn't chuck the front part of the laser into a mine now?

This is opposite of how the batteries are installed in most flashlights, so please pay attention to polarity here.

Current usage measures 77.9mA on my DMM's 400mA scale.



This is a self-contained laser module, and not a flashlight meant to be carried around, thrashed, trashed, and abused - so I won't try to drown it in the toliet tank, bash it against a steel rod or against the concrete floor of a patio, let my mother's big dog's ghost or my sister's kitty cats spring a leak (uranate) on it, run over it with a 450lb Celebrity motorised wheelchair, stomp on it, use a medium ball peen hammer in order to bash it open to check it for candiosity, fire it from the cannoņata, drop it down the top of Mt. Erupto (I guess I've been watching the TV program "Viva Piņata" too much again - candiosity is usually checked with a laser-type device on a platform with a large readout (located at Piņata Central {aka. "Party Central"}), with a handheld wand that Langston Lickatoad uses, or with a pack-of-cards-sized device that Fergy Fudgehog uses; the cannoņata (also located at Piņata Central) is only used to shoot piņatas to piņata parties away from picturesque Piņata Island, and Mt. Erupto is an active volcano on Piņata Island), send it to the Daystrom Institute for additional analysis, or perform other indecencies on it that a flashlight might have to have performed on it. So this section of the web page will be ***SIGNIFICANTLY*** more bare than this section of the web page on a page about a flashlight.

This is a directly-injected laser though, who's active components are the inverter circuit, the laser diode, and the collimating lens. So it should withstand accidents better than a DPSS (diode pumped solid state) laser - the type of laser assembly found in yellow (593.5nm), green (532nm) and blue (473nm) laser pointers. These lasers have several additional components (crystals, filters, etc.) in the optical train, and you can knock them out of alignment by doing little more than looking at them the wrong way. And if any of these components are knocked out of whack, you'll no longer get your yellow, green, or blue laser beam.
Though you still do not want to intentionally drop your blue laser module because it's a precision optical instrument.

***EXTREMELY IMPORTANT!!!***
Even though this laser is not that far into CDRH Class IIIb territory, the photons generated by it are much higher in energy than the photons generated by a red laser of equivalent power, so you definitely do not want to shine it into your eyes, other people's eyes, pets' eyes, for that matter, the eyes of any person or animal you encounter. Eye damage can occur faster than the blink reflex can protect them, regardless of what species' eyes you irradiate with this laser. So just don't do it.
And fer chrissakes (and for heaven sakes and for Pete sakes and for your sakes too) do not shine this laser at any vehicle, whether ground-based like a motorcycle, car, or truck, or air-based like a helicopter, airplane, or jet. And if you shoot it at a person in the dark and he turns out to be a police officer, he may think he's being targeted, unholster (pull out) his gun, and hose you down with it.

EXTREMELY, VERY, SUPER DOOPER IMPORTANT!!!
I know I just said this, but it bears repeating: You MUST NOT shine it in your eyes, not even when the unit's batteries have pooped out and it is below lasing threshold!!!!!!!!! You will have bright, long-lasting (several days!!!) afterimages if you do!!! The human eye was not designed for wavelengths much below 420nm in the blue-violet region of the spectrum.

This laser is sold as a CW (continuous wave) laser; even though there is a DC-DC inverter in it to boost the ~3.0 volts from the batteries to the ~5.0 volts that the Blu-Ray laser diode expects, not one iota of pulsed or QCW (quasi-CW) behaviour is evident - not even on an oscilloscope. So it is indeed true CW.



Beam photograph of this unique laser on the test target at 12".
That white & blue color does not really exist; the spot appears to be a very deep royal purple to the eye.
Digital cameras have a tough time at these wavelengths.

And yes, I know that the colors purple and violet are two different critters, but the phrase "royal violet" would not make very much sense; however, most everybody knows what "royal purple" looks like.
Purple is a mixture of red & blue; violet is a spectral color, encompassing wavelengths of ~390nm to ~410nm.

Measures 15.50mW on a laser power meter specifically designed for this purpose.
With the end cap removed, power output measures 15.53mW.



Beam photograph of this unique laser (in near-total darkness this time) on the test target at 12".




Beam photograph on a wall at ~10'.
Again, that white & blue color does not really exist.

Those colored graphics toward the left are my "Viva Piņata" posters, and that clock on the right that looks like a gigantic wristwatch is my Infinity Optics Clock.
You may also be able to see one of my SpongeBob SquarePants plush (Squidward Tentacles) and a Digimon plush (Greymon). Normally, a Patrick Star plush (from SpongeBob) would be hanging next to Squidward, but he was down here at the spectrometer for a test of his own.



Beam photograph (in near-total darkness this time) on a wall at ~10'.




Photograph of the beam spot on a structure ~100 feet away.
The spot in actuality has a dim, royal violet appearance to it.
Although this is an occupied structure, I was absolutely, positively, 100% certain to direct the laser well away from windows, doors, and other apertures.
Photograph was taken at 6:37am PDT on 03-25-09; zoom on the camera was approximately 4.2x.



This is the pocket clip.
Note that it reads "LASER POINTER"; this is a rather severe no-no considering the power output of this module.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the Blu-ray laser diode in this product.
Wavelength appears to be ~405nm, which is well within specification for the type of laser diode used in this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Same as above; but spectrometer's response narrowed to a band between 390nm and 420nm.
This shows that the wavelength is in fact 405.6nm - pretty much exactly where it ought to be!!!


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the white part of the shirt of a SpongeBob SquarePants plush (stuffed critter) when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of fluorescence of the pink body of a Patrick Star plush (stuffed critter) when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the white part of the eyes of a Squidward Tentacles plush (stuffed critter) when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a uranated* glass marble when irradiated with this laser.

*"Uranated" - infused with an oxide of uranium, *NOT* pissed on.
Commonly referred to as "Vaseline glass" because it has
a distinct pale yellow-green color when not being irradiated.

Note spelling: "urAnated", not "urEnated","urInated",
"urOnated", "urUnated", or sometimes "urYnated".


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a piece of green acrylic when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of the outer casing of the AB Moonbeams Nightlight when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a bottle of green glow powder when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of fluorescence of the red body of an interactive Guilmon toy when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the outer casing of a Tektite Mark-Lite Fire Fly when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the outer casing of a Eflare HZ530 Beacon when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the teeth of a Plankton plush (stuffed critter) when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the red boxing gloves of a Togemon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the red "petals" of a Palmon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a Koromon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a Terriermon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of an Impmon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the red markings on the paws of a Gatomon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a Gomamon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a Calumon plush when irradiated with this laser.
Crystal matrix activate!!! (.WAV sound file; 4,586,872 bytes; runtime (playing time) 0:52). The contents of this sound file are as follows:
{male voice} Digi modify....{Takato} DIGI MODIFY!!! MA-TRIX DIGIVOLUTION!!!...{Calumon} Crystal matrix activate!...{female computer voice} Matrix digivolution...{music plays}...Growlmon digivolve to...{more music plays}...Wargrowlmon!


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the beak of a Biyomon plush when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the charging base for the Radio Control Hopper Fly Helicopter when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the green part of a Gyromax remote control when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of a tritium "EXIT" sign when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the orange frames of Edmunds Scientific diffraction glasses when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of bleached white paper when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the handle of the screwdriver included with the Flying ''Frack'' R/C Helicopter when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of the red body of a Cliplight 'Vector 7' Rechargeable UV LED Light when irradiated with the this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of a Commercial Electric CFL bulb when irradiated with this laser.
Spectrometer's response narrowed to pinpoint peak phosphor fluorescence wavelength.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of a Commercial Electric CFL bulb when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the greenish-yellow "day glow" safety stripes of the VestLED when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the orange mesh of the VestLED when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrographic analysis of the fluorescence of the green lanyard included with the ICON Rogue 1 Flashlight (2) when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of the green "dots" of the Infinity Optics Clock when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of the magenta hands of the Infinity Optics Clock when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of the orange part of a large plastic clip when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of the green part of a large plastic clip when irradiated with this laser.


Spectrographic plot
Fluorescence of the phosphor of a Nichia NSPWR70CSS-K1 LED when irradiated with this laser.

USB2000 spectrometer graciously donated by P.L.



ProMetric analysis
Beam cross-sectional analysis with beam widened (x-axis).



ProMetric analysis
Beam cross-sectional analysis with beam widened (y-axis).

These charts show the somewhat ovoid beam profile;
this is consistent with directly-injected diode lasers.

Images made using the ProMetric System by Radiant Imaging.









TEST NOTES:
Test unit was purchased on 03-10-09, and was received at 10:57am PDT on 03-23-09.

The seller of this laser is Chad G.; you may about purchasing this laser (well, not *THIS* laser, but one just like it!) if you wish.

I have decided to rate this wonderful little laser five full stars ***RIGHT NOW*** and give it a place in this website's Trophy Case!!!
If something happens down the road, I can always derate it if necessary.


UPDATE: 00-00-00









PROS:
Color is very radiant & unusual for a handheld laser
Uses inexpensive and readily available batteries
Color is very radiant an unu...o wait, I said that already!!!


CONS:
Just the usual suspects for laser modules/pointers - nothing that affects rating


    MANUFACTURER: Unknown
    PRODUCT TYPE: Violet-emitting laser module
    LAMP TYPE: Sony Blu-ray laser diode
    No. OF LAMPS: 1
    BEAM TYPE: Very narrow spot — it's a laser, remember?
    SWITCH TYPE: Momentary on/off button on barrel
    CASE MATERIAL: (I believe) aluminum-covered brass
    BEZEL: Metal; laser & lens recessed into its end
    BATTERY: 2x AAA cells
    CURRENT CONSUMPTION: 77.9mA
    WATER RESISTANT: Light splatter-resistant at maximum
    SUBMERSIBLE: For Pete sakes NO!!!
    ACCESSORIES: 2xAAA cells, lidded presentation/storage case
    WARRANTY: 1 year

    PRODUCT RATING:

    Star Rating





Handheld Blue (violet-emitting) Laser Module *






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