All solid-state CW orange-red laser at 620 nm

We report for the first time a continuous-wave (CW) orange-red radiation at 620 nm by intracavity sum-frequency generation of 1085-nm Nd:YVO₄ laser and 1444-nm Nd:YAG laser. Using type-II critical phase matching KTP crystal, 620-nm orange-red laser was obtained by 1085- and 1444-nm intra-cavity sum-frequency mixing, and output power of 223 mW was demonstrated. At the output power level of 223 mW, the output power stability is better than 3% and laser beam quality M ² factor is 1.32.     

589-nm yellow laser generation by intra-cavity sum-frequency mixing in a T-shaped Nd:YAG laser cavity

To obtain high power 589-nm yellow laser, a T-shaped thermal-insensitive cavity is designed. The optimal power ratio of 1064- and 1319-nm beams is considered and the fundamental spot size distribution from the output mirror to the two laser rods are calculated and simulated, respectively. As a result, a 589-nm yellow laser with the average output power of 5.7 W is obtained in the experiment when the total pumping power is 695 W. The optical-to-optical conversion efficiency from the fundamental waves to the sum frequency generation is about 15.2% and the pulse width is 150 ns at the repetition rate of 18 kHz. The instability of the yellow laser is also measured, which is less than 2% within 3 h. The beam quality factors are Mx^2 = 4.96 and My^2 = 5.08.     

High-power near diffraction-limited 1 064-nm Nd:YAG rod laser and second harmonic generation by intracavity-frequency-doubling

We present a near diffraction-limited 1 064-nm Nd:YAG rod laser with output power of 82.3 W(M~2≈1.38). The power fluctuation over two hours is better than±1.1%.Pulsed 1064-nm laser with an average power of 66.6 W and pulse width of 46 ns are achieved when the laser is Q-switched at a repetition rate of 10 kHz.The short pulse duration stems from the short cavity as well as the high-gain laser modules. Using intracavity-frequency-doubling,a 35.0-W near diffraction-limited 532-nm green laser(M~2≈1.32) is achieved with a pulse width of 43 ns.     

Development of a high-power deep-ultraviolet continuous-wave coherent light source for laser cooling of silicon atoms

We developed a deep-UV single-mode coherent light source through two-stage highly efficient frequency conversions by use of external cavities. In the first stage, second-harmonic power of 500 mW was obtained by frequency doubling of a 746-nm Ti:sapphire laser with a conversion efficiency of 40%. In the second stage, 50-mW power at ~252nm was obtained by doubly resonant sum-frequency mixing of 373-nm light from the first-stage conversion and 780-nm light from a diode laser. The output performance of this deep-UV light source is sufficient for laser cooling of neutral silicon atoms.     

Diode-laser-pumped continuous-wave doubly linear resonator sum-frequency mixing red laser at 689 nm

We report for the first time a coherent red radiation at 689 nm by intracavity sum-frequency generation of the 1319- and 1444-nm laser-lines of two Nd:YAG lasers. Using type-II critical phase matching KTP crystal, 689-nm red laser was obtained by 1444- and 1319-nm intra-cavity sum-frequency mixing, and output power of 156 mW was obtained. At the output power level of 156 mW, the output power stability is better than 5.0% and laser beam quality M ² factor is 1.23.     

Several hundred kHz repetition rate nanosecond pulses amplification in Er–Yb co-doped fiber amplifier

We have experimentally investigated several hundred kHz repetition rate 1,550-nm nanosecond pulses amplification in Er–Yb co-doped fiber amplifier (EYDFA). The experimental setup has three stage fiber amplifiers. At the output of the second stage EYDFA, Yb³⁺ ions induced amplified spontaneous emission (Yb-ASE) is not observed owing to the low pump power. In the third stage EYDFA, a simultaneously seeded 1,064-nm continuous-wave laser is used to control Yb-ASE. Without any additional 1,064-nm signal, significantly backward Yb-ASE which caused loss-induced heat accumulation at the input port of the pump combiner can be observed. The monitored temperature at the input port of the pump combiner rapidly grows from 30 to 80 °C when the pump power is turned from 20 to 32 W. When a 196-mW forward 1,064-nm laser is added, the monitored backward Yb-ASE power is significantly declined, and the monitored temperature is kept below 35 °C. But, the additional signal caused a large power fraction at 1,064 nm in the output laser. In our experiment at the maximum pump power of 48.5 W, the total output power is 20 W with ~6.4-W 1,550-nm pulsed laser and ~13-W 1,064-nm continuous-wave laser.     

Laser-diode-pumped 1319-nm monolithic non-planar ring single-frequency laser

Single-frequency 1319-nm laser was obtained by using a laser-diode-pumped monolithic Nd:YAG crystal with a non-planar ring oscillator (NPRO). When the NPRO laser was pumped by an 800-μm fiber coupled laser diode, the output power of the single-frequency 1319-nm laser was 220 mW, and the slope efficiency was 16%. With a 100-μm fiber coupled diode laser pumped, 99-mW single-frequency 1319-nm laser was obtained with a slope efficiency of 29%.     

Generation of tunable 187.9-196-nm radiation in beta-Ba(2)BO(4)

Tunable 187.9-196-nm vacuum-ultraviolet radiation was generated at room temperature in a beta barium borate crystal by sum-frequency mixing of Nd:YAG laser radiation and the second harmonic of a dye laser pumped by the second harmonic of the same Nd:YAG laser. By use of the advantageous noncollinear phase-matching configuration, a peak power of 1.3 kW was obtained at 194 nm with input power densities as low as 79MW/cm(2) for 1064-nm and 0.65MW/cm(2) for 237.3-nm radiation.     

Tandem-pumped 1120-nm actively Q-switched fiber laser

We report on a tandem-pumped actively Q-switched fiber laser system emitting at 1120 nm.Parasitic oscillation is challenging in Yb-doped Q-switched 1120-nm fiber laser,which is suppressed by pumping with a fiber laser at 1018 nm.At least four times improvement in output peak power is demonstrated in a single laser setup with 1018-nm fiber laser pumping instead of 976-nm laser diode pumping.This is,to the best of our knowledge,the first demonstration of a tandem-pumped Q-switched fiber laser.     

Surface hardening of titanium by pulsed Nd:YAG laser irradiation at 1064- and 532-nm wavelengths in nitrogen atmosphere

The surface hardness of titanium modified by laser irradiation at different wavelengths in nitrogen atmosphere was investigated. Further, surface characteristics such as morphology, chemical state, and chemical composition in the depth direction were also studied. The size and depth of the craters observed in the laser-irradiated spots increased monotonically with an increase in the laser power. Furthermore, the crater formed by the 532-nm laser was deeper than that formed by the 1064-nm laser for the same laser power. Laser power beyond a certain threshold value was required to obtain a titanium nitride layer. When the laser power exceeds the threshold value, a titanium nitride layer of a few tens of nanometers in thickness was formed on the substrate, whereas a titanium oxide layer containing small amounts of nitrogen was formed when the laser power is below the threshold value. Thus, it was shown that laser irradiation using appropriate laser parameters can successfully harden a titanium substrate, and the actual hardness of the titanium nitride layer, measured by nanoindentation, was approximately five times that of an untreated titanium surface.     

Compact efficient all-solid-state eye-safe laser with self-frequency Raman conversion in a Nd:YVO4 crystal

An efficient compact eye-safe laser at 1525 nm is presented by use of self-frequency Raman conversion in a diode-pumped actively Q-switched Nd:YVO4 1342-nm laser. At an incident pump power of 13.5 W, the self-stimulated Raman laser produces 1.2 W of 1525-nm average output power at a repetition rate of 20 kHz. The corresponding peak power at 1525 nm is generally greater than 10 kW for repetition rates from 5 to 20 kHz.     

Efficient Nd:YVO_4 laser in-band pumped by wavelength-locked 913.9-nm laser diode and Q-switch operation

An efficient 1064-nm Nd:YVO_4laser in-band pumped by a wavelength-locked laser diode(LD) at 913.9 nm was demonstrated. The maximum continuous wave(CW) output power of 23.4 W at 1064 nm was realized with the incident pump power of 40 W, corresponding to a total optical-to-optical efficiency of 58.5%. This is to the best of our knowledge the highest total optical-to-optical efficiency and output power of Nd:YVO_4laser in-band pumped by a 913.9-nm laser diode.The Q-switched operation of this laser was also investigated. Through a contrast experiment of pumping at 808 nm, the experimental results showed that an Nd:YVO_4laser in-band pumped by a wavelength-locked LD at 913.9 nm had excellent pulse stability and beam quality for high repetition rate Q-switching operation.     

Study on CW Nd:YAG infrared laser at 1319 nm

A continuous wave (CW) Nd:YAG infrared laser at 1319 nm is reported in this paper. The energy level of 1319-nm wave was analyzed. The repression of 1064-nm lasing and enhancement of 1319-nm output power were discussed. Mirror coating and cavity structure were studied and a maximum CW output power of 43 W at 1319 nm was achieved in experiments.     

Highly efficient hybrid fiber taper coupled microsphere laser

A novel hybrid fiber taper is proposed and demonstrated as the coupler in a microsphere laser system. The pump wave and the laser emission, respectively, are more efficiently coupled to and from the sphere modes with this taper structure. A 980-nm pumped erbium-ytterbium codoped phosphate microsphere laser is demonstrated in the 1550-nm band. As much as 112microW of single-frequency laser output power was measured, with a differential quantum efficiency of 12%.     

A linearly polarized continuous-wave 1357-nm Nd:YAG laser

We demonstrated a linearly polarized continuous-wave Nd:YAG laser operating at a 1357-nm single-wavelength, by a 808-nm diode as an end-pump source. We chose a Brewster-angle-cut Nd:YAG laser host crystal, due to its two salient features as follow: linearly polarized laser output and single-wavelength oscillation can be easily obtained. In this paper, a continuous-wave all-solid-state single-wavelength laser operating at 1357 nm is demonstrated with a diode-end-pumped Brewster-cut Nd:YAG laser. The laser had a 1.03-W maximum output power under an incident pump power of 15.0 W, a 12.7% slope efficiency, a 6.9% optical-to-optical conversion efficiency, a 0.14-nm spectral linewidth and a 3% power-output stability within 30 min. PACS 42.55.Rz; 42.55.Xi; 42.70.Hj     

Compact, efficient diode-end-pumped Nd:GdVO4 slab continuous-wave 912-nm laser

A fiber-coupled laser-diode (LD) end-pumped Nd:GdVO₄ slab continuous-wave (CW) 912-nm laser and an LD bar end-pumped Nd:GdVO₄ slab CW 912-nm laser are both demonstrated in this paper. Using the fiber-coupled LD of end-pumped type, a highest CW 912-nm laser output power of 10.17 W is obtained with a high optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 24.6% and a slope efficiency of 34.5%. The measured M² factors of beam quality in x and y directions are 5.3 and 5.1, respectively. Besides, an LD bar of end-pumped type is used to realize CW 912-nm laser output, which has the advantages of compactness and low cost. When the pump power is 38.8 W, the output power is 8.87 W and the measured M² factors of beam quality in x and y directions are 16 and 1.31, respectively. In order to improve the beam quality of the 912-nm laser at x direction, a new quasi-concentric laser resonator will be designed, and an LD bar end-pumped Nd:GdVO₄ slab high-power CW 912-nm TEM₀₀ laser will be realized in the future.     

Highly efficient Nd:YAG/LBO laser at 473 nm under direct 885-nm diode laser pumping

<正>In diode pumped Nd:YAG lasers,the quantum defect is the most important parameter determining the thermal load of the laser crystal,which can be dramatically reduced by pumping directly into the upper laser level.A compact folded three-mirror cavity with a length of 105 mm is optimized to obtain a highly efficient 473-nm laser.When the absorbed pump power(with 15.8-W incident pump power) at 885 nm into Nd:YAG is 10 W,a continuous-wave 473-nm blue laser as high as 2.34 W is achieved by LBO intra-cavity frequency doubled.The optical-to-optical conversion efficiency is 14.8%.To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest efficiency at 473 nm by an intra-cavity doubled frequency Nd:YAG laser.     

High repetition rate Tm：Ho：LuLiF master-oscillator and Tm-doped fiber power-amplifier system

A high repetition rate Tm:Ho:LuLiF master-oscillator and polarization-maintaining (PM) Tm-doped fiber power-amplifier system is presented.A 11.3-kHz,0.4-nm line width,0.89-W Tm:Ho:LuLiF seed laser is developed.Using a two-stage PM Tm-doped fiber power amplifier system,32.4-W output power is obtained with 0.4-nm line width at a central wavelength of 2058.5 nm,corresponding to 0.66-W seed laser.The laser spectrum and pulse profile are measured.     

Demonstration of long-term reliability of a 266-nm, continuous-wave, frequency-quadrupled solid-state laser using beta-BaB(2)O(4)

We report what we believe to be the first operation of more than 1000 h of a 266-nm (cw) frequency-quadrupled solid-state laser with a 100-mW output. We used beta-BaB(2)O(4)(BBO) crystal grown by the Czochralski method to double the green-light (532-nm) wavelength, using an external resonant cavity. The green light was generated with an intracavity frequency-doubled Nd:YVO(4)laser pumped by a 4-W laser diode. When the incident 532-nm power on the external resonant doubler was 500 mW, we generated 100 mW of cw 266-nm radiation with the BBO crystal. The degradation rate seems to be proportional to the strength of the UV optical electric field. We also obtained a relative intensity noise of -130dB/Hz at frequencies of 2 to 10 MHz for 266-nm laser light.