Efficient high-power Yb:LuAG Innoslab ultrafast amplifier compressible to 360 fs

Area of Science:

• Laser Physics and Photonics
• Materials Science in Optics
• High-Power Laser Systems

Background:

• Development of efficient and stable high-power laser sources is crucial for various scientific and industrial applications.
• Ytterbium-doped materials are attractive for laser amplification due to their favorable spectroscopic properties.
• Innoslab amplifier architectures offer compact and efficient solutions for laser power scaling.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a high-efficiency Yb:LuAG-based Innoslab amplifier.
• To achieve high average output power and pulse energy with excellent beam quality.
• To investigate the power stability and efficiency of the developed laser system.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a Ytterbium-doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (Yb:LuAG) crystal in an Innoslab amplifier configuration.
• Employed a grating compressor to achieve ultrashort pulse durations.
• Characterized the amplifier's output power, pulse energy, repetition rate, optical efficiency, power stability, and beam quality (M²).

Main Results:

• Achieved 242 W average output power with 1.37 mJ pulse energy at 175 kHz repetition rate.
• Demonstrated a high optical efficiency of 40.7%.
• Obtained excellent power stability (0.11% RMS fluctuation) and beam quality (M² < 1.5) at maximum output.

Conclusions:

• The Yb:LuAG Innoslab amplifier represents a significant advancement in high-power, efficient laser systems.
• The compact, single-stage design delivers high amplified output power from a low-power seed, maintaining excellent beam quality.
• This technology holds promise for applications requiring high-energy, ultrashort laser pulses.