Stability and gain properties of dye-doped polymeric active elements in a solid-state dye laser

This work investigates the gain properties of a MPMMA (modified polymethyl methacrylate) polymer host material doped with Rh6G-chloride dye molecules. Additionally, the polymer matrix is also doped with low molecular weight additives, such as alcohol. The measured absorption and fluorescence spectra of the dye doped MPMMA polymer material are found to differ considerably from those obtained in liquid dye solutions: the main absorption band is much broader and of different shape. The stability, and consequently, the service lifetime of the active material are investigated by measuring the conversion efficiency as a function of the number of pump pulses. The experimental data indicate that the observed changes in the conversion efficiency are mainly caused by the heating of the sample.