Numerical study of passive Q switching of a tunable alexandrite laser with a Cr:Y2SiO5 solid-state saturable absorber

Passive Q switching of a tunable alexandrite solid-state laser with a Cr:Y2SiO5 solid-state saturable absorber is numerically studied over a major portion of the alexandrite tuning range. The theory of passive Q switching with a slowly relaxing saturable absorber is studied and utilized for evaluating the performance of the Cr:YSO Q-switched alexandrite laser system. With a typical laser configuration, a Q-switched laser pulse of 262 mJ in 23 ns is obtained.