Numerical simulation of a CW-pumped Cr:YAG passively Q-switched Yb:YAG pulsed laser

A general model of a CW-pumped passively Q-switched laser is presented which considers the pump power and excitation state of the absorber. The recovery time of the absorber is affected by the Q-switched laser pulse length and repetition rate, which results in changes of the Output power, peak power and pulse duration of a CW-pumped passively Q-switched solid-state laser. At low pump power, the final inversion population density alters slowly by a small amount and the effect of the absorber's finite recovery time on laser output energy can be ignored. At high pump power, the final inversion population density increases quickly with pump power increase and the output energy decreases greatly. Simulation results of a CW-pumped, Cr:YAG Q-switched, Yb:YAG laser are reported. The numerical simulation results agree with the theoretical analytical analysis. (c) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved