Achievement of an efficient 1053 nm Nd:YLF polarized laser based on different thermal lensing effects

Abstract

The negative and positive thermal focal lengths for 1047 nm and 1053 nm were respectively demonstrated through analyzing different thermal lensing effects along the π- and σ-polarizations in a plane-parallel resonator. A compact and efficient diode-end-pumped 1053 nm Nd:YLF polarized laser is presented. As high as 11.2 W output power of the polarized 1053 nm laser has been obtained at an absorbed pump power of 22.3 W with an optical–optical efficiency of 50% and a slope efficiency of 53%. With the aid of a ray propagation matrix and a λ/4 wave plate, different thermal lensing effects for the π- and σ-polarizations have been theoretically analyzed and experimentally verified.