DIODE-PUMPED Q-SWITCHED YB-S-FAP LASER

A diode-pumped, repetitively Q-switched 1% doped Yb3+:Sr-5(PO4)(3)F la ser has been demonstrated for the first time, pumped with a strained I nGaAs continuous-wave diode laser. The maximum output energy per pulse was 125 mu J at 1.047 mu m, with a pulse duration of sub-30 ns. The Q -switched average power was identical to the steady-state CW power at repetition rates over 1 to 10 kHz, consistent with a 1.26 ms emission lifetime. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.