Self-Q-switched Cr, Nd:YAG laser under direct 885 nm diode laser pumping

A self-Q-switched Cr, Nd:YAG laser operating at 1064 nm under direct pumping at 885 nm is demonstrated. The 885 nm direct pumping scheme shows some advantages over the traditional pumping scheme at 808 nm. The slope efficiency increases by 10%, and the threshold decreases by 3.5%.