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We report a high-power two-crystal Ho:YAG slab laser. A maximum cw output power of 146.4 W at a wavelength of 2090.7 nm is achieved, corresponding to a slope efficiency of 66.0% and an optical efficiency of 61.2%. The beam quality factor is measured to be M2 < 2.2 at different output power levels. With an acousto-optic Q-switch, a maximum average output power of 141.3, 137.7 and 134.5 W are obtained at pulse repetition rates of 20, 30 and 50 kHz, respectively. Minimum pulse widths of 39 ns, 44 ns and 74 ns are achieved for the above pulse repetition rates.

A diode pumped, injection-seeded Q-switched Er:YAG laser at 1645.2 nm is demonstrated. A single frequency Er:YAG monolithic nonplanar ring oscillator (NPRO) laser emitting at 1645.24 nm with a maximum output power of 500 mW is used as a seed laser. The seed laser output is injected into a bow-tie slave laser, obtaining stable single-frequency Q-switched operation of the Er:YAG laser. The maximum single-frequency Q-switched Er:YAG laser output energy is 2.9 mJ at 100 Hz with a pulse duration of 160 ns.

We demonstrate a continuous-wave (cw) and actively Q-switched Er : YAG ceramic laser resonantly dual-end-pumped by a 1532 nm fibre-coupled laser diode. A maximum cw output power of 1.48 W at 1645.3 nm is obtained at an absorbed pump power of 12.72 W, corresponding to a slope efficiency of 19.2%. In the Q-switched regime the maximum pulse energy of 0.84 mJ is reached at a pulse repetition rate of 100 Hz, pulse duration of 48.03 ns and absorbed pump power of 10.51 W.