Open AccessHighly efficient 110-W closed-cycle cryogenically cooled Nd:YAG laser operating at 946 nm
Author(s) -
Gholamreza Shayeganrad,
Silvia Cante,
Jorge Pelegrin Mosquera,
Wendell Bailey,
Jacob I. Mackenzie
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
optics letters/optics index
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.524
H-Index - 272
eISSN - 1071-2763
pISSN - 0146-9592
DOI - 10.1364/ol.401011
Subject(s) - algorithm , materials science , computer science
We report a new, to the best of our knowledge, record power and efficiency for a 946 nm Nd:YAG laser, producing >110 W (5 T W m -2 s r -1 ) with a slope efficiency of 80%, with respect to absorbed pump power, and an optical-to-optical efficiency of 74%, with respect to incident power. To achieve this performance, we utilized a closed-cycle acoustic Stirling cryostat to maintain the gain medium temperature at ∼80 K and direct in-band pumping with a volume-Bragg-grating stabilized diode laser bar operating at 868 nm. Daily operation, including cycling of the laser crystal temperature, akin to a comparable water-cooled solid-state laser system, is demonstrated.