IMPROVED PASSIVE SELF-INJECTION LOCKING METHOD FOR SPECTRAL CONTROL OF DYE AND TI-AL2O3 LASERS USING 2-STEP PULSE PUMPING

An improved passive self-injection locking (PSIL) method for the spect ral control of dye and Ti:Al2O3 lasers using two-step pulse laser pump ing is reported (theoretically, experimentally). By this pump techniqu e, the typical unwanted free lasing which occurs in the non-selective cavity at high pump level is reduced by a few orders of magnitude comp ared with the standard PSIL application. This combined approach ensure s high purity tunable emission at laser efficiency nearly equal to the maximum obtained in an optimized non-selective cavity and avoids opti cal damage problems. This makes the PSIL method competitive or prefera ble to other frequently used spectrally selective methods. Analysis an d experimental check for two-wavelength lasers are included.