Semiconductor quantum-well saturable absorbers for efficient passive Q switching of a diode-pumped 946 nm Nd : YAG laser

Abstract

lnGaAs quantum wells and a Bragg mirror structure are grown on a GaAs substrate to simultaneously serve as a low-loss saturable absorber and an output coupler for highly efficient Q switching of a diode-pumped Nd:YAG laser operating at 946 nm. With an incident pump power of 9.2 W, the laser produces pulses of 38 ns duration with average pulse energy of as much as 20 mu J at a pulse repetition rate of 55 kHz. (c) 2007 Optical Society of America.