SnS₂ as a Saturable Absorber for Mid-Infrared Q-Switched Er:SrF₂ Laser

Two-dimensional (2D) materials own unique band structures and excellent optoelectronic properties and have attracted wide attention in photonics. Tin disulfide (SnS₂), a member of group IV-VI transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), possesses good environmental optimization, oxidation resistance, and thermal stability, making it more competitive in application. By using the intensity-dependent transmission experiment, the saturable absorption properties of the SnS₂ nanosheet nearly at 3 μm waveband were characterized by a high modulation depth of 32.26%. Therefore, a few-layer SnS₂ was used as a saturable absorber (SA) for a bulk Er:SrF₂ laser to research its optical properties. When the average output power was 140 mW, the passively Q-switched laser achieved the shortest pulse width at 480 ns, the optimal single pulse energy at 3.78 µJ, and the highest peak power at 7.88 W. The results of the passively Q-switched laser revealed that few-layer SnS₂ had an admirable non-linear optical response at near 3 μm mid-infrared solid-state laser.