Abstract

High-power picosecond laser sources are increasingly in demand for industrial material processing and precision surgery since the high peak powers and ultrashort pulses provide the advantage of efficient material removal, with minimal surrounding heat damage. Many systems are based on passive modelocking with Semiconductor Saturable Absorber Mirrors (SESAM's), since their inclusion in laser systems is simple and their properties can be tailored according to the application [1,2]. A drawback of this technology for high power operation is damage incurred by the SESAM and the limitation of pulse length due to the recovery time of the absorption process.

© 2009 IEEE