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© Springer-Verlag London 1997Originally published by Springer-Verlag London Limited in 1997. Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1 st edition 1997 The use of registered names, trademarks, ete. in this publieation does not imply, even in the absence of a specifie statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.The publisher makes no representation, express or implied, with regard to the aeeuracy of the information eontained in this book and eannot aecept any legal responsibility or Iiability for any errors or omissions that may be made.Typesetting: Camera ready by authors 69/3830-543210 Printed on acid-free paper vi Preface resonators. Here we deal with linear stable and unstable resonators which represent probably 95% of all resonators currently used in lasers. Leaving the active medium out of the treatment is the classical approach to the subject since the gain generally only perturbs the physical properties ofthe resonator rather than completely changing them. The influence of the medium on the resonator properties will be discussed in Part IV. This part also reviews the physics of laser emission and presents output power calculation models as well as the effects of gain on the mode structure.A collection of special resonator concepts is presented in Part V. These concepts are either only used in a limited number of applications or laser designs, or might play an important role in the near future. Resonator schemes such as prism resonators, Fourier transform resonators, hybrid resonators, and resonators for annular gain media fall into this category. We also included the ring resonator into this part although some readers might argue that it deserves its own part since it is a widely used scheme and probably more important than any other resonator presented here.A collection of major measurement techniques is given in Part VI. This will help the practicing engineer to make a detailed analysis ofhis laser system. Among others, techniques for measuring gain, losses, and beam quality are invaluable for anyone designing and working with laser systems.A detailed reference list will help the reader to get more information on a preferred subject. Wehave included the titles of the publications as a help, and publications which give a good review or are a must to read are referred to in the text. We certainly do not claim completeness but to the best of our knowledge we have covered as many publications as possible. The references are listed in their chronological order to give the reader a feeling for the historical development in the specific area.We hope that this monograph will help you to get more insight into optical resonators and assist you in analyzing and solving the problems you are facing as a laser enginee...