Performance of diode-end-pumped Cr, Nd:YAG self-Q-switched and Nd:YAG/Cr:YAG diffusion bonded lasers

Self-passively Q-switching of a diode-pumped Cr,Nd:YAG, where the Cr⁴⁺ is used as a saturable absorber for the 1064 nm laser emission is reported. The maximum average output power was obtained using an output coupler of R=86%. The self-Q-switched diode pumped laser yielded 1.86-W average output power with low threshold pumping power (≈1.7-W), average slope efficiency of ≈34%, pulse duration of about 14–16 ns, and modulation frequency ranging from 2.4 to 73 kHz, depending on the input pumping power. These results are the highest reported for self-Q-switched lasers. Higher slope efficiency (42%) and shorter Q-switched pulses were obtained for a Q-switched Nd:YAG/Cr⁴⁺:YAG diffusion bonded laser. A comparison of the codoped Cr,Nd:YAG laser performance, with that of a diffusion bonded laser is reported and analyzed.     

Monoblock laser for a low-cost, eyesafe, microlaser range finder

A small, lightweight, low-cost prototype laser has been developed for use in a microlaser range finder (muLRF). The laser design is based on a flash-lamp-pumped, Nd:YAG laser with a Cr(4+) passive Q switch. The design incorporates a monolithic potassium titanyl arsenide (KTA) optical parametric oscillator (OPO) in an intracavity configuration, producing output at 1.54 mum. Precisely cut, properly coated crystals make up the laser resonator, reducing the number of components and enabling laser oscillation with the simplest of alignment fixtures. The 1.54-mum laser cavity consists of only four rectangular-shaped crystals: a Nd:YAG laser rod, a Nd:YAG endcap, a Cr(4+) Q switch, and a KTA OPO. Along with a ceramic laser pallet and a flash lamp, these six components make up a prototype monoblock (essentially a one-piece) laser transmitter. Several of these simple prototypes have been built and tested, giving a nominal output of >3.0 mJ at 1.54 mum with a 27-ns pulse width. The transmitter was incorporated into a breadboard laser range finder, and successful ranging operations were performed to targets at ranges in excess of 3 km.     

Cr~(4+):YAG被动调Q Nd:YAG陶瓷激光器输出特性研究

本文对Cr~(4+):YAG被动调Q Nd:YAG陶瓷激光器的输出特性进行了理论和实验研究.在相同泵浦功率和不同输出耦合透过率条件下,实验测量了被动调Q陶瓷激光器的输出激光重复频率、平均输出功率以及单脉冲能量,并与理论计算结果进行了比较.研究结果表明,随着输出耦合透过率的增加,输出激光重复频率单调减小,而平均输出功率及单脉冲能量则呈现出先增加后减小的变化趋势,只是平均输出功率及单脉冲能量所对应的最佳输出耦合透过率会有所不同.     

Efficient 550-600-nm tunable laser based on noncritically phase-matched frequency doubling of room-temperature LiF:F2- in lithium triborate

We report on efficient conversion of a 1064-nm Nd:YAG laser to tunable visible light. The conversion scheme uses noncritically phase-matched second-harmonic generation of a pulsed Nd:YAG-pumped LiF:F2- laser in lithium triborate. Optimization yields 42% LiF:F2- laser efficiency and 56% frequency-doubling efficiency, providing >20% conversion from 1064 nm to broadly tunable visible output. A dramatic sensitivity of laser efficiency to pump pulse duration is recorded, with a fundamental efficiency improvement of over 30-fold measured for an increase in pump pulse duration from 5 to 34 ns.     

激光引信用微宝石激光器设计

针对微宝石激光器在激光引信领域的应用需求,从激光二极管泵浦Cr4 :YAG被动调Q微宝石激光器速率方程出发分析了输出镜反射率、Cr4 :YAG晶体初始透过率、泵浦速率对激光器输出参量的影响及其变化规律.理论计算表明,文中设计的激光器理论上可以实现短脉冲(＜1.5ns)、高峰值功率(14.5kW)、高重频(泵浦光为1W情况下激光重复频率为7.2kHz)的稳定激光输出.最后给出了Cr4 :YAG晶体运转过程,并以此为基础分析了微宝石激光器的稳定性.计算分析表明,微宝石激光器理论上可以满足激光引信用激光器的要求.     

Diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser with 38 W average power and user-selectable, flat-in-time subnanosecond pulses

A diode-pumped injection-seeded Nd:YAG laser system with an average output power of 38 W is described. The laser operates at 300 Hz with pulse energies up to 130 mJ. The temporal pulse shape is nominally flat in time and the pulse width is user selectable from 350 to 600 ps. In addition, the spatial profile of the beam is near top hat with contrast <10%.     

Pump beam waist-dependent pulse energy generation in Nd:YAG/Cr4+:YAG passively Q-switched microchip laser

Abstract

The incident pump beam waist-dependent pulse energy generation in Nd:YAG/Cr⁴⁺:YAG composite crystal passively Q-switched microchip laser has been investigated experimentally and theoretically by moving the Nd:YAG/Cr⁴⁺:YAG composite crystal along the pump beam direction. Highest pulse energy of 0.4 mJ has been generated when the Nd:YAG/Cr⁴⁺:YAG composite crystal is moved about 6 mm away from the focused pump beam waist. Laser pulses with pulse width of 1.7 ns and peak power of over 235 kW have been achieved. The theoretically calculated effective laser beam area at different positions of Nd:YAG/Cr⁴⁺:YAG composite crystal along the pump beam direction is in good agreement with the experimental results. The highest peak power can be generated by adjusting the pump beam waist incident on the Nd:YAG/Cr⁴⁺:YAG composite crystal to optimize the effective laser beam area in passively Q-switched microchip laser.     

Thermal tuning of laser pulse parameters in passively Q-switched Nd:YAG lasers

Modifying the output pulses of a passively Q-switched Nd:YAG laser, operating at 1064 nm, was realized by heating the laser crystal. With the demonstrated laser setups, a 100 K temperature rise led to a more than 50% increase in the pulse energy and a more than 10% decrease in the pulse length. This method offers an effective way to tune the output of the laser without mechanical adjustment or a change of components.     

Comparison on performance of passively Q-switched laser properties of continuous-grown composite GdVO4/Nd:GdVO4 and YVO4/Nd:YVO4 crystals under direct pumping

The comparison on performance of passively Q-switched laser properties of continuous-grown composite GdVO(4)/Nd:GdVO(4) and YVO(4)/Nd:YVO(4) crystals under direct pumping to the emitting level was demonstrated. A Cr(4+):YAG crystal was used as saturable absorber. At an incident pump power of 10 W, the average output power, the pulse width, the repetition rate, the pulse energy, and the peak power for a GdVO(4)/Nd:GdVO(4) laser were 1.22 W, 48.1 ns, 121 kHz, 10.1 μJ, and 209.6 W, respectively. And for a YVO(4)/Nd:YVO(4) laser under the same conditions, these output characteristics were 1.26 W, 44.9 ns, 218 kHz, 5.8 μJ, and 128.7 W, respectively.     

Diode-end-pumped passively Q-switched Nd:YAG crystal laser with V:YAG saturable absorber at 1319 and 1338 nm

A diode-end-pumped passively Q-switched Nd:YAG laser with a V:YAG saturable absorber emitting at 1319 and 1338?nm was demonstrated for the first time. A maximum output power of 286?mW was obtained with minimum pulse duration of 13.2?ns and the highest repetition rate was 15?kHz under an incident pump power of 7.7?W. The calculated highest peak power and pulse energy were 2.1?kW and 29?μJ, respectively.     

Passively Q-Switched Diode-Pumped Continuous-Wave Nd:YAG-Cr(4+):YAG Laser with High Peak Power and High Pulse Energy

A high peak power and high pulse energy passively Q-switched diode-pumped cw Nd:YAG laser at 1.064-mum wavelength has been demonstrated with Cr(4+):YAG crystal as the saturable absorber. The average output power of 7-12 W and pulse duration of 100-250 ns was obtained with kilohertz repetition rates. The highest peak power and pulse energy obtained were 30 kW and 3.4 mJ, respectively. All the output resulted from the TEM(00) mode with M(2) < 1.1. The thermal lensing effect of the saturable absorber was investigated, demonstrating that it played an important role in optimization of the output.     

钛宝石泵浦Cr,Nd:YAG微片的自调Q激光特性

用连续的钛宝石激光泵浦１mm厚的Cr^4 ,Nd^3 ;YAG晶体微片获得了１．０６４μm的自调Ｑ激光输出,输出的激光调Ｑ脉冲非常稳定,泵浦的阈值功率为３０mW,脉冲宽度为１００ns随着泵浦功率的变化,脉冲宽度保持不变,而重复率则在变化。斜率效率随着输出耦合镜透过度的变化而变化,当输出耦合率为５％时,斜率效率高20%.一研究有助于进一步发展激光二极管泵浦的全固化的自调Ｑ微片激光器。     

Laser Gas Nitriding of Ti-6Al-4V Part 1: Optimization of the Process

A multi-variable test method, known as the Orthogonal Array, was used to optimize the parameters for the laser gas nitriding process (LGNP) to avoid surface cracking. Based on the fundamental requirement of a crack-free condition, the processing parameters were further optimized to improve the surface finish and to obtain a reasonable hardened depth. The effects of processing parameters have also been investigated with respect to the characteristics of the laser nitrided layer. Two types of lasers, i.e., CO₂ and Nd:YAG lasers were used. The CO₂ laser was operated in both the continuous as well as the pulse mode, while the Nd:YAG laser was used only in the pulse mode. A Nd:YAG laser in the pulse mode provided a better surface finish and lower cracking severity.     

Semiconductor quantum-well saturable absorbers for efficient passive Q switching of a diode-pumped 946 nm Nd:YAG laser

InGaAs quantum wells and a Bragg mirror structure are grown on a GaAs substrate to simultaneously serve as a low-loss saturable absorber and an output coupler for highly efficient Q switching of a diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser operating at 946 nm. With an incident pump power of 9.2 W, the laser produces pulses of 38 ns duration with average pulse energy of as much as 20 microJ at a pulse repetition rate of 55 kHz.     

Near-diffraction-limited, high-energy, high-power, diode-pumped laser using thermal aberration correction with aspheric diamond-turned optics

We achieved a 1.3× diffraction-limited output beam with a pulse energy of 0.76 J at 60 Hz (average power of 46 W) at 1.064 μm from a diode-pumped Nd:YAG master oscillator power amplifier rod laser using a diamond-turned aspheric optic to compensate thermally induced phase distortion of the gain medium. The output was frequency doubled in KTP to 30 W (0.5-J pulse energy) and 2.4× diffraction-limited at 532 nm.     

Optimization of diode-pumped doubly QML laser with neodymium-doped vanadate crystals at 1.34 μm

We present a theoretical model for a diode-pumped, 1.34 μm V³⁺:YAG laser that is equipped with an acoustic-optic modulator. The model includes the loss introduced by the acoustic-optic modulator combined with the physical properties of the laser resonator, the neodymium-doped vanadate crystals and the output coupler. The parameters are adjusted within a reasonable range to optimize the pulse output characteristics. A typical Q-switched and mode-locked Nd:Lu_0.15Y_0.85VO₄ laser at 1.34 μm with acoustic-optic modulator and V³⁺:YAG is set up, and the experimental output characteristics are consistent with the theoretical simulation results.     

InGaAs quantum-well saturable absorbers for a diode-pumped passively Q-switched Nd:YAG laser at 1123 nm

A low-loss semiconductor saturable absorber based on InGaAs quantum wells was developed for highly efficient Q switching of a diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser operating at 1123 nm. With an incident pump power of 16 W, an average output power of 3.1 W with a Q-switched pulse width of 77 ns at a pulse repetition rate of 100 kHz was obtained.     

Q-switched 2-micron lasers by use of a Cr2+:ZnSe saturable absorber

Flash-lamp-pumped Ho:YAG (2090-nm) and Tm:YAG (2017-nm) lasers were, for the first time to our knowledge, passively Q switched by use of a Cr(2+):ZnSe saturable absorber. A Q-switched Ho laser with 1.3-mJ pulse energy and ~90-ns pulse duration and a Q-switched Tm laser with ~3.2-mJ pulse energy and 90-ns pulse duration were demonstrated. Compared with the free-running output energies at the Q-switching threshold pump levels, the Q-switching efficiencies were approximately 5% for the Ho:YAG laser and 16% for the Tm:YAG laser.     

Multiwatt High-Repetition-Rate 2-microm Output from an Intracavity KTiOPO(4) Optical Parametric Oscillator

We have obtained 6.5 W of 2-mum output from a near-degenerate, type II KTiOPO(4) (KTP) optical parametric oscillator (OPO) pumped within the cavity of a Q-switched diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser that operates at 3 kHz. We adopted the simplest configuration with a compact diode-pumped Nd:YAG module pumping the doubly resonant KTP OPO in its randomly polarized resonator with an acousto-optic Q switch. Attempts to increase the 2-mum output power by pumping this intracavity KTP OPO with a polarized laser beam by use of thermal birefringence compensation configurations are discussed.     

Characterization and laser performance of a new material: 2 at. % Nd:YAG grown by the Czochralski method

We report on the optical quality and laser performance of Czochralski-grown 2-at. %-doped Nd:YAG. Using a diode pumped laser in an end pumped configuration, we compare the laser performance of this material with the performance of 1-at. %-doped Nd:YAG and 0.7-at. %-doped Nd:YVO4 crystals. Experimental results show the superior performance of 2-at. % Nd:YAG over Nd:YVO4. With a pump power of 25.7 W, a maximum output power of 12.3 W with a slope efficiency of 57% and an optical-to-optical efficiency of 48% were achieved.