Power scaling of an actively Q-switched orthogonally polarized dual-wavelength Nd:YLF laser at 1047 and 1053 nm.

Abstract

We report a high average power actively Q-switched (AQS) orthogonal polarization dual-wavelength Nd:YLF laser at 1047 and 1053nm. The gain-to-loss balance of dual wavelengths was realized via an uncoated quartz etalon. A maximum continuous wave (CW) output power of 14.2W was obtained under the incident pump power of 41.7W, corresponding to an optical-to-optical conversion efficiency of 34.1% and a slope efficiency of 38.3%. Active Q-switching was accomplished by inserting an acousto-optic modulator in the cavity. Under the incident pump power of 40W, this setup delivered a maximum average output power of 10W at the pulse repetition frequency (PRF) of 30kHz and the largest pulse energy of 3.4mJ at the PRF of 1kHz, respectively. To the best of our knowledge, these are the highest average output powers for both CW and AQS orthogonally polarized dual-wavelength lasers based on laser crystals.