Laser Physics · 2009 · 16 citations · 11 references
EngineeringElectrical EngineeringPhotonicsSemiconductor DevicesSemiconductor MaterialsLaser DiodesLaser OpticsLaser PhysicsOptical Properties Of SemiconductorsSaturable AbsorptionSemiconductor LasersEfficiencyMode LockingMode-locked LasersMode-locked Semiconductor LasersSemiconductor Laser DiodesSolid-state Lasers
The comparative study of pulsed diode pumped Nd:GdVO 4 and Nd:YVO 4 slab lasers in a bounce geometry in a free running and a passively mode-locked regime was performed. The better efficiency of Nd:GdVO 4 in both regimes was obtained. In the free running regime the efficiency of 39% was achieved from Nd:GdVO 4 comparing with 28% from Nd:YVO 4 . Passive mode-locking of both lasers using a semiconductor saturable absorber in the transmission mode was demonstrated. Trains containing 6 pulses were generated in both cases but the pump energy for Nd:GdVO 4 was 50% lower. The single pulse extraction using cavity dumping was demonstrated with contrast better than 10 −3 .
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