Optical parametric oscillator dependence on pump laser beam quality

Experimentation with a pulsed, angle-tuned LiNbO
3
optical parametric oscillator revealed the dependence of pump power depletion and conversion efficiency on pump laser beam divergence. Mathematical expressions, developed for these parameters, were based on a spherical-wave model. Calculated results and comparison with experimental observations indicate the degree to which phasefront curvature affects parametric oscillator performance.