We demonstrate, for the first time, passively Q-switched laser operation of Yb:Y(3)Ga(5)O(12) garnet crystal. An output power of 4.53 W at 1031 nm was generated at a pulse repetition rate of 55.6 kHz, with a Cr(4+):YAG crystal acting as saturable absorber whose initial transmission was 97.5%, the corresponding pulse energy, duration and peak power were respectively 81.5 μJ, 28.5 ns and 2.86 kW. Laser pulses at a lower repetition rate of 18.2 kHz were also achieved at 1025 nm while the initial transmission of the Cr(4+):YAG crystal was 85.0%, with an output power measured to be 2.56 W, the resulting pulse energy, duration, and peak power being 140.8 μJ, 5.9 ns, and 23.9 kW, respectively.
We report on a systematic study of the absorption and emission spectral properties of (Yb(0.1)Y(0.9))(3)(Sc(1.5)Ga(0.5))Ga(3)O(12) (Yb:YSGG) crystals. The broad fluorescence spectral lines indicate great potential of Yb:YSGG for tunable and ultrafast laser applications. Efficient continuous-wave (cw) laser oscillation was also demonstrated at room temperature (RT), generating an output power of 6.11 W with an optical-to-optical efficiency of 64.2%, and a slope efficiency of 80.1% with respect to absorbed pump power. The laser emission spectrum shifts to shorter wavelengths as the transmission of the output coupler varies from 3% to 20%, a result that can be explained based on the effective gain cross-sections of Yb:YSGG.
The passive Q-switching laser performance of Yb:YCa(4)O(BO(3))(3) is studied with crystals cut along the principal optical axes. Using a Cr(4+):YAG saturable absorber with initial transmission of 93.7% and an output coupler of transmission of 40%, efficient Q-switched laser operation is achieved with a X-cut crystal, generating an output power of 2.14 W at a pulse repetition rate of 4.5 kHz. The resulting laser pulse is 9.3 ns in duration, with the energy being as high as 476 μJ and the peak power amounting to 51.2 kW. The results demonstrated in this work reveal the great potential of this crystal in developing high-energy compact pulsed lasers.
We report on the passive Q-switching laser performance of the Yb:Gd3Ga5O12 garnet crystal. With a Cr4+:YAG crystal used as saturable absorber for passive Q-switching, an average output power of 5.31 W was produced at a pulse repetition rate of 62.5 kHz, the optical-to-optical and slope efficiencies being, respectively, 45% and 61%. Laser pulses of 140 μJ in energy and 5.8 ns in duration were also obtained at 22.2 kHz, with a corresponding peak power amounting to 24.1 kW.
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