Diode-pumped regenerative Nd:YAG ring amplifier for space application

D. Barry Coyle; R. B. Kay; John J. Degnan; Danny J. Krebs; Bernard D. Seery

doi:10.1117/12.60155

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1 June 1992 Diode-pumped regenerative Nd:YAG ring amplifier for space application

D. Barry Coyle, R. B. Kay, John J. Degnan, Danny J. Krebs, Bernard D. Seery

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Proceedings Volume 1627, Solid State Lasers III; (1992) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.60155
Event: OE/LASE '92, 1992, Los Angeles, CA, United States

Abstract

The study reviews the research and development of a prototype laser used to study one possible method of short-pulse production and amplification, in particular, a pulsed Nd:YAG ring laser pumped by laser diode arrays and injected seeded by a 100-ps source. The diode array pumped, regenerative amplifier consists of only five optical elements, two mirrors, one thin film polarizer, one Nd:YAG crystal, and one pockels cell. The pockels cell performed both as a Q-switch and a cavity dumper for amplified pulse ejection through the thin film polarizer. The total optical efficiency was low principally due to the low gain provided by the 2-bar pumped laser head. After comparison with a computer model, a real seed threshold of about 10 exp -15 J was achieved because only about 0.1 percent of the injected energy mode-matched with the ring.

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D. Barry Coyle, R. B. Kay, John J. Degnan, Danny J. Krebs, and Bernard D. Seery "Diode-pumped regenerative Nd:YAG ring amplifier for space application", Proc. SPIE 1627, Solid State Lasers III, (1 June 1992); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.60155

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