High Pulse Energy, Narrow Linewidth 6.45 μm from an Optical Parametric Oscillator in BaGa₄Se₇ Crystal

Abstract

This paper presents a high pulse energy, narrow linewidth, mid-infrared (MIR) laser at 6.45 μm, based on a BaGa4Se7 (BGSe) crystal optical parametric oscillator (OPO) pumped by 1.064 μm laser. The maximum pulse energy at 6.45 μm was up to 1.23 mJ, with a pulse width of 24.3 ns and repetition rate of 10 Hz, corresponding to an optical–optical conversion efficiency of 2.1%, from pump light 1.064 μm to idler light 6.45 μm. The idler light linewidth was about 6.8 nm. Meanwhile, we accurately calculated the OPO phase-matching condition at BGSe crystal pumped by 1.064 μm laser, and a numerical simulation system was performed to analyze the input–output characteristics at 6.45 μm, as well as the effect of crystal length on the conversion efficiency. Good agreement was found between measurement and simulation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest pulse energy at 6.45 μm, with the narrowest linewidth for any all-solid-state MIR ns laser in BGSe-OPO pumped by simple 1.064 μm oscillator. This simple and compact 6.45 μm OPO system, with high pulse energy and narrow linewidth, can meet the requirements for tissue cutting and improve tissue ablation accuracy.

Keywords

• optical parametric oscillator (OPO)
• BaGa₄Se₇ crystal
• 6.45 μm mid-infrared (MIR) laser