Title :
Efficient Pulse Stretching of Q-Switched Lasers
Author :
Rutten, Thomas P. ; Veitch, Peter J. ; Munch, Jesper
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Phys., Univ. of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA
Abstract :
We present a new and simple technique for efficient stretching of Q-switched laser pulses using a novel ring resonator and a variable Pockels cell Q-switch driven by a simple circuit. The production of 10-mJ flat-topped Q-switched pulses with a duration that can be stretched by a factor of 4.5-1.8 mus without loss of pulse energy is demonstrated. We show that the pulse stretching agrees well with predictions of a numerical model.
Keywords :
Pockels effect; Q-switching; high-speed optical techniques; laser cavity resonators; optical losses; Pockels cell Q-switch; Q-switched laser pulses; flat-topped Q-switched pulses; pulse energy loss; pulse stretching; ring resonator; Laser mode locking; Laser modes; Laser radar; Laser stability; Lasers and electrooptics; Optical pulses; Optical resonators; Optical ring resonators; Pulse modulation; Ring lasers; Q-switched lasers; Driver circuits; electrooptic modulation; laser resonators;
Journal_Title :
Quantum Electronics, IEEE Journal of
DOI :
10.1109/JQE.2008.925140
