Bulk optical damage thresholds for doped and undoped, crystalline and ceramic yttrium aluminum garnet.

We measured the bulk optical damage thresholds of pure and Nd-doped ceramic yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), and of pure, Nd-doped, Cr-doped, and Yb-doped crystalline YAG. We used 9.9 ns, 1064 nm, single-longitudinal mode, TEM00 pulses, to determine that the breakdown thresholds are deterministic, with multiple-pulse thresholds ranging from 1.

Properties of optical breakdown in BK7 glass induced by an extended-cavity femtosecond laser oscillator.

Using an extended-cavity femtosecond oscillator, we investigated optical breakdown in BK7 glass caused by the accumulated action of many laser pulses. By using a pump-probe experiment and collecting the transmitted pump along with the reflected pump and the broadband light generated by the optical breakdown, we measured the build-up time to optical breakdown as a function of the pulse energy, and we also observed the instability of the plasma due to the effect of defocusing and shielding created by the electron gas. The spectrum of the broadband light emitted by the optical breakdown and the origin of the material modification in BK7 glass was studied.

Bulk and surface laser damage of silica by picosecond and nanosecond pulses at 1064 nm.

We measured bulk and surface dielectric breakdown thresholds of pure silica for 14 ps and 8 ns pulses of 1064 nm light. The thresholds are sharp and reproducible. For the 8 ns pulses the bulk threshold irradiance is 4.