Publications

High-efficiency high-energy wavelength-doubling optical parametric oscillator

Armstrong, Darrell J.; Smith, A.V.

We have numerically modeled an efficient method of doubling the 1064 nm wavelength of a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser using a lambda-doubling nanosecond optical parametric oscillator (LDOPO). The LDOPO cavity is based on the four-mirror nonplanar RISTRA geometry, denoting rotated-image singly-resonant twisted rectangle, and contains a single type-II KTP crystal. By using the polarization-rotating properties of this cavity, and modifying its geometry to incorporate polarization-selective mirrors with angles of incidence near Brewster's angle, this design obtains stable, singly-resonant oscillation at degeneracy. If the pump laser is injection-seeded, and the LDOPO contains an intra-cavity étalon for single-longitudinal-mode oscillation, the phase of the wavelength-doubled 2128 nm light remains locked to the phase of the pump, independent of cavity length, so active frequency stabilization is not required. Numerical analysis indicates that a pulse-injection-seeded LDOPO can obtain 1064 nm to 2128 nm conversion efficiency exceeding 61%. However, analysis of a complete system incorporating a primary low-energy LDOPO that pulse-injection-seeds a secondary higher-energy LDOPO indicates total 1064 nm to 2128 nm efficiency of approximately 57%. A 2128 nm lambda-doubling system having conversion efficiency > 50% may offer a cost-effective alternative to conventional two micron laser sources such as Tm:Ho:YAG.