Optical amplification characteristics of Cr:LiSAF and Cr:LiCAF under flashlamp-pumping

Author

Beaud, P. ; Richardson, M.C. ; Chen, Y.-F. ; Chai, B.H.T.

Author_Institution

CREOL, Central Florida Univ., Orlando, FL, USA

Volume

30

Issue

5

fYear

1994

fDate

5/1/1994 12:00:00 AM

Firstpage

1259

Lastpage

1266

Abstract

Small-signal gain measurements of flashlamp-pumped Cr-doped LiSAF and LiCAF are summarized for a range of material parameters. Flashlamp pumping allows efficient energy storage for both materials in the order 1.6 to 2.6% of the electrical pump energy. Small-signal gain values of up to 0.16 cm^-1 are measured for Cr:LiSAF and 0.09 cm^-1 for Cr:LiCAF. The gain of both materials is found to be affected by excited state absorption and upconversion. In addition the implications of these results for the design of laser/amplifier systems are discussed

Keywords

chromium; flash lamps; lithium compounds; optical pumping; solid lasers; Cr:LiCAF; Cr:LiSAF; LiCaAlF₆:Cr; LiSrAlF₆:Cr; electrical pump energy; energy storage; excited state absorption; flashlamp-pumped; flashlamp-pumping; frequency upconversion; laser amplifier system design; material parameters; optical amplification characteristics; small-signal gain measurements; Gain measurement; Laser excitation; Laser modes; Optical amplifiers; Optical design; Optical materials; Pump lasers; Stimulated emission; Tunable circuits and devices; Ultrafast optics;

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Quantum Electronics, IEEE Journal of

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

0018-9197

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/3.303691

Filename

303691