Simulations of the gain profile and performance of a diode side-pumped QCW Nd:YAG laser.

A design of a diode side-pumped Nd:YAG laser module and simulations of the gain distribution inside the active medium are presented in this paper. The code is based on a nonsequential ray-tracing Monte Carlo method for the light generated by the laser diodes. The fluorescence image of the active medium was analyzed in order to compare it with the simulations, which were found to be in good agreement with experimental data.