High energy quadruple pass amplifier for high power laser preamplifier module

Pre-amplifier between the frontend and main power amplifier is the key unit of high power laser divers. The recent progresses on the off-axis quadruple pass amplifier are presented, which include the beam path design, parasitic oscillation research and experimental results. A single longitudinal mode, temporally shaped laser pulse with 5ns pulse duration at 1053nm is injected into a Nd: Glass regenerative amplifier, which can provide a 12mJ energy output with 0.5% long term energy stability. The quadruple pass amplifier is designed as an off-axis pattern. With 1.3mJ energy injection, amplified pulse with 16.5J can be achieved, and the measured output energy stability of the amplifier is 7.3% (PV) at this output energy level, corresponding to a 21 shot result. The total gain of the amplifier is more than 10,000. The parasitic oscillation was analyzed and discussed, and the parasitic mode and pencil beam are neither observed in the experiment.