Synchronization of 1064 and 1342 nm pulses using passive saturable absorbers

Abstract The material V:YAG can work as a saturable absorber both at 1064 and 1342 nm. It is shown in this paper, that the saturation effect is spectrally homogeneous. V:YAG can therefore be used for generation of passively synchronized Q-switched pulses at wavelengths hundreds of nanometers apart. First a pump–probe experiment is described, investigating the fundamental cross wavelength coupling. Then the first measurements of synchronized Q-switched pulses using a solid-state passive saturable absorber are presented. Finally a setup containing two different saturable absorbing materials is investigated, showing very stable passive synchronized Q-switching at two distinct wavelengths.