End-pumped Yb-doped fluorapatite laser

An ytterbium:fluorapatite (Yb:FAP) laser crystal was longitudinally pumped using a Ti:sapphire laser emitting at 905 nm. The highest slope efficiency obtained was 60.5%, and the maximum output power was 214 mW with a pump power of 438 mW. Repetitive Q-switching was demonstrated for the first time. The Q-switched average power was identical to the continuous-wave (CW) power at repetition rates exceeding 20 kHz, as is consistent with the 1.08-ns emission lifetime.<
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