High power, side-pumped Nd:YVO/sub 4/ laser using a total internal reflection cavity design

Author

Kim, G.H. ; Pierce, J.W. ; Lowenthal, D.D.

Author_Institution

Aculight Corp., Bothell, WA, USA

Volume

2

fYear

1999

fDate

Aug. 30 1999-Sept. 3 1999

Firstpage

215

Abstract

Power scaling end-pumped Nd:YV04 lasers is difficult due to thermally induced crystal fracture and thermal aberrations. Side-pumping a laser enables power scaling, but typically has issues associated with obtaining both good beam quality with high extraction efficiency. Achieving both of these characteristics at low average power, a Nd:YV04 laser using a total internal reflection (TIR) bounce cavity has been reported. Recently, excellent extraction efficiency and beam quality were achieved using the TIR bounce cavity design with a high peak power diode-pumped Cr:LiSAF laser. In the work we describe a diode pumped Nd:YV04 laser system using a TIR bounce oscillator/amplifier configuration producing high extraction efficiency and good beam quality.

Keywords

aberrations; laser beams; laser cavity resonators; neodymium; optical materials; optical pumping; solid lasers; yttrium compounds; Cr:LiSrAlF/sub 6/ laser; Nd:YV04 laser; Nd:YVO/sub 4/ laser; YVO/sub 4/:Nd; beam quality; cavity design; extraction efficiency; high power side-pumped laser; power scaling; power scaling end-pumped lasers; side-pumping; thermal aberrations; thermally induced crystal fracture; total internal reflection bounce cavity; total internal reflection bounce oscillator/amplifier configuration; total internal reflection cavity design; Laser beams; Laser excitation; Lenses; Optical amplifiers; Optical design; Optical reflection; Oscillators; Power lasers; Pump lasers; Vertical cavity surface emitting lasers;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Lasers and Electro-Optics, 1999. CLEO/Pacific Rim '99. The Pacific Rim Conference on

Conference_Location

Seoul, South Korea

Print_ISBN

0-7803-5661-6

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/CLEOPR.1999.811380

Filename

811380