Stimulated phonon-sideband emission from laser-diode-pumped microchip Nd solid-state lasers and associated low-frequency fluctuations

Summary form only given. Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) is a powerful tool for generating a frequency-shifted coherent field SRS is usually achieved by introducing an intense laser field into a Raman cell or by using an intracavity Raman cell inserted in a laser resonator. However, no experimental demonstrations of SRS using a laser medium itself have been reported yet. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time intracavity-stimulated Raman emission in the phonon sideband in laser-diode-pumped microchip Nd solid-state lasers, such as Nd:YAG, Nd:YVO/sub 4/, and LiNdP/sub 4/O/sub 12/(LNP), in which no Raman cell is used. Stokes shifts are about 3000 cm/sup -1/, yielding phonon-sideband (Stokes) emissions around 15 /spl mu/m.