Highly efficient 60-W TEM(00) cw diode-end-pumped Nd:YAG laser.

Area of Science:

• Laser Physics
• Optoelectronics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Diode-end-pumped solid-state lasers offer efficient power conversion.
• Nd:YAG lasers are widely used due to their robust performance and favorable optical properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a high-power, efficient diode-end-pumped Nd:YAG laser.
• To characterize laser performance in both near-diffraction-limited and multimode operation.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a diode-end-pumping architecture for a Nd:YAG gain medium.
• Employed optical configurations to achieve both TEM(00) and multimode laser output.
• Measured output power and beam quality (M-squared).

Main Results:

• Achieved 60 W output power in a near-diffraction-limited beam (M(2) < 1.3).
• Reached 92 W output power in multimode operation.
• Demonstrated optical-to-optical efficiencies of 26% (TEM(00)) and 44% (multimode).

Conclusions:

• The diode-end-pumped Nd:YAG laser design enables high-power output with excellent efficiency.
• The system offers versatile performance suitable for various applications requiring different beam characteristics.