High-power Nd:YLF four-level lasers with 68% slope efficiency.

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Laser Physics
• Materials Science

Background:

• Neodymium-doped Yttrium Lithium Fluoride (Nd:YLF) lasers are crucial for various applications.
• Improving the efficiency of Nd:YLF lasers, particularly in four-level systems, remains an active research area.
• Diode pumping offers advantages in efficiency and compactness for solid-state lasers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate novel laser resonators utilizing Nd:YLF.
• To achieve high optical efficiencies in a four-level laser system.
• To investigate the performance of volume Bragg grating-equipped diode pumps.

Main Methods:

• Construction and testing of three distinct laser resonator designs.
• Pumping Nd:YLF crystals at 797 nm using volume Bragg grating-equipped diode lasers.
• Characterization of output power and optical efficiency.

Main Results:

• Demonstration of three laser resonators operating at 1053 nm.
• Achieved record-high efficiencies for Nd:YLF in a four-level configuration.
• A peak output power of 880 W was obtained with 1.4 kW of peak pump power.

Conclusions:

• The demonstrated laser resonators represent a significant advancement in Nd:YLF laser technology.
• The use of volume Bragg grating-equipped diodes is effective for high-efficiency pumping.
• These results pave the way for more powerful and efficient laser systems.