Efficient electrooptically Q-switched Er:Cr:YSGG laser oscillator-amplifier system with a Glan-Taylor prism polarizer

A relatively simple efficient electrooptically Q-switched Er:Cr:YSGG laser oscillator-amplifier system in a line has been demonstrated. A Glan-Taylor prism and a cubic LiNbO3 crystal are used as the polarizer and modulator, respectively. Using the line scheme, one can adjust the system elements easily and achieve a good Q-switched-to-free-running pulse energy ratio of 75% and an energy amplification coefficient of 1.8. As short as 80 ns of the leading edge of a stable single pulse and 132 ns in FWHM with an energy of 24.5 mJ are generated. We also investigate the effects of the pump energy and the delay time on the postlasing, the stable single-pulse operation, the prelasing, the laser buildup time, and the Q-switched pulse width. The laser system demonstrated can be used for the effective ablation of soft and hard tissues.