High-Peak-Power Acousto-Optically Q-Switched Er:Y2O3 Ceramic Laser at ∼2.7 μm

We report on a high-peak-power acousto-optically Q-switched Er:Y
₂
O
₃
ceramic laser operating at room temperature. Stable pulses with a duration of 41-190 ns (FWHM) are generated at approximately 2.7 μm with the repetition rate varying from 0.3 to 10 kHz. The peak power at 0.3-kHz repetition rate is approximately 7.3 kW. An average output power of over 320 mW is generated at a repetition rate of 10 kHz using an output coupler with a transmission of 8%.