A webcam in Bayer-mode as a light beam profiler for the near infra-red

► A cheap webcam was set into Bayer-mode and used as a laser beam profiler in the near infra-red. ► In Bayer-mode the size of a single pixel was around 2.8 μm. ► Together with a Gaussian fit we achieved a resolution of plus minus 1 μm for Gaussian beams. ► We were able to determine the mode quality factor of a laser.