Room-temperature laser on a ZnSe : Fe²⁺polycrystal with undoped faces, excited by an electrodischarge HF laser

Abstract

Characteristics of a laser on a ZnSe : Fe2+ polycrystalline active element with undoped faces (the concentration of Fe ions was maximal inside the crystal and zero at the faces) were studied. The laser was pumped by a non-chain electrodischarge HF laser at room temperature of the crystal. The active element was fabricated by the method of diffuse doping, which prevented the iron film newly deposited to a ZnSe substrate from interacting with atmospheric air (moisture and oxygen) and hindered the subsequent penetration of oxygen into the ZnSe matrix in the course of the high-temperature annealing of the sample. This method was used instead of those employed earlier for doping polycrystalline samples; it noticeably increased the efficiency and generation energy of a ZnSe : Fe2+ laser at room temperature of the crystal. The generation energy was 298 mJ at the slope efficiency of ηslope = 45% and the total efficiency with respect to the absorbed energy of ηabs = 40%.