Demonstration of a 20‐W membrane‐external‐cavity surface‐emitting laser for sodium guide star applications

We present a record 20-W continuous-wave output power membrane- external-cavity surface-emitting laser (MECSEL) double-bonded to silicon carbide (SiC) heat spreaders emitting around 1178 nm. We achieved a maximum slope efficiency of 27.7% and an optical-to-optical efficiency of 26.7%. By utilising an intracavity birefringent filtre, the wavelength was tuned over 75 nm and maximum output power of 12.7 W was recorded at 1178 nm. This study shows the potential of MECSELs to achieve high-performance and cost-effective optically pumped semiconductor disk lasers targeting applications in sodium guide stars.

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