625 mJ, 1 kHz picosecond pulsed laser amplifier based on cascaded zig-zag slabs

Area of Science:

• Laser physics and optics
• Materials science for laser gain media

Background:

• High-energy pulsed lasers are crucial for various scientific and industrial applications.
• Developing efficient amplifiers for picosecond pulses at kilohertz repetition rates remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and demonstrate a high-energy zig-zag slab laser amplifier system.
• To achieve significant pulse energy scaling for picosecond lasers at kHz repetition rates.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a two-stage end-pumped Neodymium-doped Yttrium Orthovanadate (Nd:YVO4) pre-amplifier.
• Employed a two-stage zig-zag slab amplifier architecture with beam shaping and angular multiplexing.
• Analyzed thermal wavefront distortion and optimized optical parameters for amplifier construction.

Main Results:

• Generated 625.4 mJ pulses with a 477 ps duration at a 1 kHz repetition rate.
• Achieved a three-order-of-magnitude increase in pulse energy from the pre-amplifier to the main amplifier.
• Measured beam quality factors of Mx²=1.73 and My²=3.34.

Conclusions:

• The developed zig-zag slab laser amplifier successfully scaled pulse energy significantly.
• The system provides a robust architecture for high-energy picosecond laser development at kHz repetition rates.
• This work serves as a reference for advancing high-energy picosecond laser technology.