Widely tunable pulse durations from a passively mode-locked thin-disk Yb:YAG laser

Area of Science:

• Laser Physics
• Optics and Photonics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Passively mode-locked thin-disk Yb:YAG lasers are crucial for generating ultrashort pulses.
• Previous designs were limited to a narrow pulse duration range (~0.7 ps) due to spatial hole burning.
• Achieving wider pulse tunability is essential for diverse scientific and industrial applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a passively mode-locked thin-disk Yb:YAG laser with continuously tunable pulse durations.
• To overcome the limitations imposed by spatial hole burning in previous laser designs.
• To achieve a significantly wider range of pulse durations than previously reported.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a thin-disk Ytterbium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (Yb:YAG) laser medium.
• Implemented a passively mode-locking technique.
• Engineered a novel laser cavity design featuring two different angles of incidence on the thin disk to mitigate spatial hole burning.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated solitonlike pulse generation with continuously tunable durations from 3.3 to 89 ps and 0.83 to 1.57 ps.
• Achieved average output powers of approximately 12 W.
• Successfully reduced the detrimental effect of spatial hole burning, enabling broader pulse tunability.

Conclusions:

• The developed laser architecture significantly expands the achievable pulse duration range for thin-disk Yb:YAG lasers.
• The novel cavity design effectively suppresses spatial hole burning, paving the way for more versatile ultrashort pulse generation.
• This advancement offers enhanced capabilities for applications requiring precisely controlled ultrashort laser pulses.