Abstract
We experimentally investigate a free-space, off-axis method for pumping high-power photonic crystal fiber (PCF) lasers and amplifiers. The method is based on off-axis injection of the pump beam, exploiting the relatively high numerical aperture of the PCF pump cladding. With this method, we obtain pump coupling efficiency of more than 97 % for incidence angles as high as 30 degrees and show that with more than 60-W pump power the laser efficiency and beam quality do not significantly depend on the incidence angle. Our results indicate that this off-axis pumping method, with its significant advantages over the standard on-axis methods, can be exploited in high-power photonic crystal lasers and amplifiers.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 327-331 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| Journal | Applied Physics B: Lasers and Optics |
| Volume | 114 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Mar 2014 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Physics and Astronomy (miscellaneous)
- General Physics and Astronomy