Abstract

Over the past several years, substantial progress has occurred in the development of mode-locked (ML) solid-state lasers emitting in the 2-µm spectral range, based on Tm- and Ho-doped or co-doped crystals and ceramics, in particular towards femtosecond pulse generation. This advancement has been defined to a great extent by the availability of new host materials for these trivalent optically active rare-earth (RE) dopant ions. We discuss here essential requirements and properties of such materials for successful laser operation in the sub-100-fs regime based on the ³F₄ → ³H₆ Tm³⁺ and the ⁵I₇ → ⁵I₈ Ho³⁺ transitions and summarize more recent ML laser results [1].

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