Selection of CO laser single nanosecond pulse by electro-optic CdTe shutter

To select a single laser pulse from a train of nanosecond pulses emitted by a mode-locked CO laser with wavelengths from ∼5 to 6 μm, an electro-optic shutter based on CdTe Pockels cell was developed. A contrast between the selected pulse and unselected laser emission was equal to 20 and twice as much decreased in a CO laser power amplifier. To increase the contrast, a feasibility of applying a narrow-gap semiconductor as a saturable absorber is discussed.