High power single frequency 780nm laser source generated from frequency doubling of a seeded fiber amplifier in a cascade of PPLN crystals.

We report on the generation of over 900 mW of tunable cw light at 780 nm by single pass frequency doubling of a high power fiber amplifier in a cascade of two periodically poled Lithium Niobate (PPLN) crystals. Over 500 mW is generated in the first crystal. In the limit of low pump power, we observe an efficiency of 4.6 mW/W2-cm for a single crystal, and 5.6 mW/W2-cm for a combination of two crystals, with an enhancement of the doubling efficiency observed with two crystals due to the presence of second harmonic light from the first crystal acting as a seed for the second. We have frequency locked this laser source relative to a rubidium D2 hyperfine line and demonstrated its utility in a sophisticated laser cooling apparatus.