Why Blue Laser Pointers Are Much More Expensive Than Green Laser Pointers. Price is one of the most apparent differences between a blue laser pointer and a green laser pointer. A 10 mW blue laser pointer costs $700 compared to the equivalent 15 mW green laser pointer, which costs $100.
The cost of laser pointers, in general, is higher. Lab lasers, OEM lasers, and blue laser modules are significantly more expensive than green lasers. The methods utilized to create the laser beam, the components employed, and the manufacturing quantities account for the stark price disparities.
Beam generation process
The same kind of crystals is pumped in blue and green laser pointers using a pump diode that emits infrared 808nm light. In turn, the pumped crystals emit light in the far infrared range. The optical coatings on the pumped crystals and the kind of far-infrared light these crystals emit make the distinction between blue and green lasers.
An optical coating on the pumped crystals in a green laser pointer leads them to emit predominantly 1064nm infrared light, which is then frequency doubled by another crystal to green 532nm light. A modified coating on the pumped crystals in a blue laser pointer allows the crystals to emit mostly 946nm infrared light, which is then frequency doubled by another crystal to 473nm light.
The components
Since it is significantly more efficient to produce light at 1064 nm than at 946 nm, blue laser pointers require a huge pump diode to have the same output. Blue laser pointers cost extra due to the bigger pump diode. Blue laser pointers use frequency-doubling crystals, which are more expensive and rarer than green ones.
Manufacturing volumes
Green laser pointers are more visible than blue and experience fewer heating issues at higher power settings. Green lasers are produced in large quantities and have many uses, including astronomy, pointing, burning, and signaling. Contrarily, blue laser pointers have significantly more limited benefits and are produced in much smaller quantities. Like any product, the price increases as the books produced decrease.
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