Power scaling of a continuous-wave and passively Q-switched Yb:KLu(WO4)2 laser end-pumped by a high-power diode

The power scaling capacity of a diode end-pumped Yb:KLu(WO4)(2) laser, operating in the continuous-wave (cw) and passively Q-switched regimes, has been investigated. A cw output power of 11.5 W was achieved with an optical-to-optical efficiency of 41% with respect to the incident pump power, while the slope efficiency amounts to 60%. The passively Q-switchedoperation yielded an average output power of 4.3 W at the fundamental wavelength of 1031.7 nm, and 1.15 W of Raman radiation at 1139.3 nm. The total slope efficiency for Q-switched operation was 40%. The highest pulse energy, duration, and peak power were 170 mu J, 2.2 ns, and 77.3 kW for the fundamental radiation, and 51 mu J, 2.3 ns, and 22.2 kW for the Raman radiation.