Abstract

A 3 at.% Tm-doped ${\mathrm{CaF}}_2$ crystal was grown successfully and used as a gain medium. A high-efficiency continuous-wave laser and wide tuning performance were demonstrated in this crystal, and passive mode-locking laser operation was realized for the first time, to the best of our knowledge. For continuous-wave operation, the maximum output power was 2.71 W with a high slope efficiency of 70.3%. Using a quartz birefringent filter, a continuous tuning range of approximately 190 nm was observed in the tuning mode. In addition, a passively mode-locked ${\mathrm{Tm}}^{3+}\text{:}{\mathrm{CaF}}_2$ laser emitting at 1886.8 nm was achieved with a semiconductor saturable absorber mirror. At an absorbed pump power of 2.65 W, a pulse duration with tens of picoseconds was obtained at a pulse repetition rate of 96.35 MHz.

© 2018 Optical Society of America

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