Passively Q-switched Yb- and Sm-doped fiber laser at 1064Â nm

The article describes a simple method of developing a Q-switched fiber laser utilizing the passive Q-switching technique. An ytterbium-doped double-clad fiber was used as the gain medium and a small length of samarium-doped fiber as a saturable absorber to obtain passive Q-switching operation. The laser was capable of operating at continuous wave (CW), Q-switched mode locked, and Q-switched regimes under suitable conditions. Further, the article presented, for the first time, properties of the laser with the orientation of the polarization controller plates inside the cavity. The all fiber laser produces very stable pulses with different energy and repetition rates.