Yb:YAG laser pumped at 946 nm

High power continuous-wave Yb:YAG laser pumped by a compact Nd:YAG laser at 946 nm is reported. The laser generated maximum output power of 4.37 W at an absorbed pump power of 6.22 W with a slope efficiency of 70%. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first implementation of Yb:YAG laser pumped by a Nd:YAG laser at 946 nm.