Abstract

In recent years, there have been enormous research efforts to improve the performance of lasers emitting at 3 μm mainly because of their potential applications in laser surgery. Due to the high absorption of 3-μm radiation in water, high-quality cutting or ablation is demonstrated in biological tissue using erbium-doped solid-state lasers. We have recently demonstrated a CW output power of 1 7 W at 2.7 μm with a slope efficiency of 17% from an Er³⁺,Pr³⁺ codoped ZBLAN fiber [1].

© 2000 IEEE