Operation characteristics of diode-pumped, bifocusing compensated two-rod Nd : YAG lasers with diffusive reflectors

Abstract

The low-mode operation characteristics of a high-power. continuous-wave, two-rod Nd:YAG laser pumped by diode lasers were investigated. We used diffusive reflectors for uniform pumping of 4-mm-diameter rods and a 90 degrees polarization rotator for bifocusing compensation. For the case of bifocusing compensation. a 190-W C-W output power was obtained with an optical efficiency of 31 %, and the beam quality factor was as low as about 9. The spatial beam pattern of the output beam was improved when a rotator was used.