Laser performance of Nd:YAG at 946 nm and frequency doubling with periodically poled LiTaO3

Abstract The continuous-wave and acousto-optical Q-switched pulse laser properties of diode-pumped Nd:YAG crystal operating at 946 nm formed with a simple plane–plane cavity have been studied. Extra-cavity single-pass quasi-phase matching (QPM) frequency doubling with periodically poled LiTaO 3 (PPLT) as the nonlinear crystal yielded a maximum output power of 66 mW at 473 nm with an overall optical to optical efficiency of 14.2% from 946 to 473 nm. Our result proves that this scheme is of practical value for the construction of a blue all-solid-state laser.