No abstract

Results of diode-pumped cw laser operation of an Interest in Yb 31 -doped materials is still growing, owing to the increasing availability of high-power, highbrightness InGaAs laser diodes emitting near 980 nm. For numerous applications near 1.05 mm, Yb 31 -doped materials exhibit various advantages compared with their Nd 31 counterparts. The fact that there are only two electronic multiplets in the near-infrared spectral domain 1 leads to very low quantum defects (typically ,10%), reducing thermal loads and preventing undesired effects such as upconversion and excitedstate absorption. The absence of these effects permits high dopant concentrations while maintaining low f luorescence quenching and gives rise to high efficiencies even at high pump powers. 2The longer emission lifetimes of Yb 31 -doped materials ensure higher energy-storage capabilities. Finally, because of stronger electron -phonon interaction, the broader absorption and emission spectra of these materials allow diode pumping with relaxed temperature regulation constraints, wide tunabilities, and the production of ultrashort pulses.