Abstract

The impact that an efficient, inexpensive, and reliable visible laser source would have on data storage, display technology, undersea communications, and optical processing has provided the stimulus for much recent work on solid state visible lasers. For many applications it is of essential importance to be able to design the laser for a given oscillation wavelength providing maximal power efficiency. Unless additional selective elements are included in the laser cavity, the oscillation wavelength will for a given cavity loss be chosen by the spectral shape of the emission and absorption cross sections. In general, because the spectral properties are dependent on hosts and index-raising dopants,¹ time consuming numerical analyses will normally be required to predict laser operation.

© 1994 IEEE