Q-Switched Operation with Carbon-Based Saturable Absorbers in a Nd:YLF Laser

• Main Authors: Rosa Weigand, Margarita Sánchez Balmaseda, José Manuel Guerra Pérez
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2015-09-01
• Series: Applied Sciences
• Subjects: diode-pumped lasers; Q-switched Nd:YLF laser; mode-locked Nd:YLF; graphene saturable absorber; carbon nanotube saturable absorber
• Online Access: http://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/5/3/566

We have numerically studied the influence of the absorption modulation depth of carbon-based saturable absorbers (graphene and carbon nanotubes (CNTs)) on the Q-switched regime of a diode-pumped Nd:YLF laser. A short-length cavity was used with an end mirror on which CNTs or mono- or bi-layer graphene were deposited, forming a saturable absorber mirror (SAM). Using a standard model, the generated energy per pulse was calculated, as well as the pulse duration and repetition rate. The results show that absorbers with higher modulation depths, i.e., graphene, deliver higher energy pulses at lower repetition rates. However, the pulse duration did not have a monotonic behavior and reaches a minimum for a given low value of the modulation depth typical of CNTs.