Performance of doubly Q-switched and mode-locked Nd:Lu0.33Y0.37Gd0.3VO4 and Nd:Lu0.5Y0.5VO4 lasers with acousto-optic modulator and GaAs saturable absorber

By using Nd:YVO4, Nd:Lu0.5Y0.5VO4 and Nd:Lu0.33Y0.37Gd0.3VO4 crystals as laser media, the diode-pumped singly passively Q-switched and mode-locked (QML) lasers with GaAs saturable absorber, and the doubly QML lasers with acousto-optic (AO) modulator as well as GaAs are presented. In comparison with the singly passively QML laser with GaAs, the doubly QML lasers can generate stable pulse train, shorter pulse width, greater pulse energy and higher peak power. The experimental results show that the Nd:Lu0.33Y0.37Gd0.3VO4 QML laser can generate shorter pulse width with higher peak power than the Nd:YVO4 or Nd:Lu0.5Y0.5VO4 QML laser.