Spectral and power characteristics of a 5% Tm : KLu(WO4)2 Nm-cut minislab laser passively Q-switched by a Cr2+ : ZnSe crystal

Laser characteristics of a 5%Tm : KLu(WO₄)₂ N_m-cut minislab laser passively Q-switched by a Cr²⁺ : ZnSe saturable absorber are presented. At a pump power of 21 W, the average laser power at a wavelength of 1.91 μm was 3.2 W (pulse duration 35 ns, pulse energy 0.3 mJ). The maximum slope efficiency of the laser in the Q-switched regime was 31%; the loss in power with respect to the cw regime did not exceed 17%. At pump powers above 15 W, the dependence of the output power in the Q-switched regime on the pump power considerably differed from linear, which was explained by the formation of a thermal lens in the saturable absorber volume. The experimental energies and durations of laser pulses well agree with the values calculated from rate equations.