Abstract
A novel method to shape the intensity distribution within an unstable laser cavity is demonstrated. This method is characterized by inscribing a tailored gain profile generated by a spatially tophat-shaped longitudinal pump beam into the gain medium. The mode shaping mechanism is still effective with zero output coupling. Therefore, this method enables to operate unstable laser cavities in cavity dump mode or as a regenerative amplifier. The theoretical background is described by means of geometrical optics, and operation of a prototype setup using cryogenically cooled Yb:YAG is demonstrated. The system produces 13 ns pulses with 285 mJ at a repetition rate of 10 Hz, with an extraction efficiency of 35 %. Successful cavity dump operation is demonstrated with 110 mJ output energy.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 21622-21634 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Optics Express |
| Volume | 27 |
| Issue number | 15 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 17 Jul 2019 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Open access CC-BYFunder
European Regional Development Fund (CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/15_006/0000674); Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (739573); Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic (LO1602, LM2015086).Funding
European Regional Development Fund (CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/15_006/0000674); Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (739573); Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic (LO1602, LM2015086). European Regional Development Fund (CZ.02.1.01/0.0/0.0/15_006/0000674); Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (739573); Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic (LO1602, LM2015086). The authors would like to thank Prof. Malte C. Kaluza, Dr. Joachim Hein and Diethard Klöpfel from the Institute of Optics and Quantum Electronics in Jena, Germany, for supporting this work.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics