PERIODICALLY POLED LITHIUM-NIOBATE OPTICAL PARAMETRIC-AMPLIFIERS PUMPED BY HIGH-POWER PASSIVELY Q-SWITCHED MICROCHIP LASERS

High-power passively Q-switched microchip lasers produce 157-mu J puls es of l-ns duration in a single-frequency, diffraction-limited output beam. The unfocused 1.064-mu M output of these devices has been used t o drive periodically poled lithium niobate optical parametric amplifie rs at wavelengths between 1.4 and 4.3 mu m. With a peak conversion eff iciency of nearly 1.00%, these devices generate 100-kW, subnanosecond pulses in the mid IR, with a beam quality that is better than two time s diffraction limited. (C) 1997 Optical Society of America