Abstract

The highest average output power and pulse energy from mode-locked laser oscillators are currently achieved using semiconductor saturable absorber mirror (SESAM) [1] mode-locked thin disk lasers (TDL) [2]. Up to now the shortest pulses of 240 fs at 22 W average output power in this configuration were demonstrated with the monoclinic Yb:KYW [3], which suffers from strong anisotropy in its thermal properties, which prevents further power scaling. Using the cubic sesquioxide Yb:Lu₂O₃ as gain medium, pulses as short as 370 fs could be obtained with a pump power limited output power of 20.5 W at 1034 nm [4]. The new mixed sesquioxide Yb:LuScO₃ [5] provides a nearly doubled gain bandwidth compared to Yb:Lu₂O₃ of more than 20 nm and supports the generation of significantly shorter pulses.

© 2009 IEEE