Abstract

The ordinary and extraordinary nonlinear refractive indices of ${\mathrm{SrLaGa}}_3{\mathrm{O}}_7$ and ${\mathrm{Ca}}_2{\mathrm{Ga}}_2{\mathrm{SiO}}_7$ were determined from the measured spectral changes in intense 800-nm, 150-fs pulses, propagated through these uniaxial crystals. A numerical analysis involving both group-velocity dispersion and self-phase modulation gave $n_2$ $=(11\pm 1)\times {10}^{-20} {\mathrm{m}}^2/\mathrm{W}$ in ${\mathrm{SrLaGa}}_3{\mathrm{O}}_7$ and $n_2=(6.5\pm 1)\times {10}^{-20} {\mathrm{m}}^2/\mathrm{W}$ in ${\mathrm{Ca}}_2{\mathrm{Ga}}_2{\mathrm{SiO}}_7$ for ordinary polarization; results for extraordinary beams agreed with these values to within experimental error. These high values suggest that these crystals are viable host matrices for pulsed solid-state lasers, capable of producing subpicosecond pulses through Kerr-lens mode locking.

© 1997 Optical Society of America

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