High-power efficient continuous-wave TEM00 intracavity frequency-doubled diode-pumped Nd:YLF laser

Area of Science:

• Laser Physics
• Nonlinear Optics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Diode-pumped solid-state lasers offer high efficiency and compactness.
• Nd:YLF lasers are suitable for various applications due to their favorable properties.
• Second-harmonic generation (SHG) is crucial for producing visible laser light.

Purpose of the Study:

• To optimize and design a diode-pumped Nd:YLF laser for high-power second-harmonic generation.
• To investigate and mitigate thermal effects in the Nd:YLF gain medium.
• To achieve efficient conversion to green light (527 nm).

Main Methods:

• Utilized a diode-pumped, intracavity-doubled continuous-wave (cw) Nd:YLF laser.
• Employed a critical phase-matched lithium triborate (LBO) crystal for second-harmonic generation.
• Developed a power-scaling model considering thermal effects, upconversion, and thermal fracture limits.

Main Results:

• Achieved 20.5 W of green laser output power at 527 nm.
• Obtained a high optical-to-optical efficiency of 34.2% at 60 W incident pump power.
• Demonstrated a TEM00 spatial mode with an M2 parameter of 1.2 and power instability < +/- 1% RMS.

Conclusions:

• The optimized cavity design and power-scaling model successfully enabled high-power, efficient second-harmonic generation.
• The developed diode-pumped Nd:YLF laser system is suitable for applications requiring stable, high-power green light.
• This work highlights the importance of thermal management in high-power laser design.