Abstract

We studied the thermo-optic properties of diode-pumped high-power pulsed ceramic- and crystalline-active-element Nd:YAG lasers with neodymium ion concentrations of 2.0 and 1.1 at. %, respectively. We showed that under comparable excitation conditions, the mean heat generation from the ceramic Nd:YAG active element is 30%–35% higher than that from the crystalline Nd:YAG active element. The difference in thermal power is apparent from the energy of the polarized output laser pulses as a function of frequency. A quarter-wave plate partially compensates for thermally induced birefringence. This technique was found to be effective up to maximum frequencies of 50 and 70 Hz, for the ceramic and crystalline active elements, respectively.

© 2020 Optical Society of America

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