Side-Pumped vs. End-Pumped Laser Geometry: Advantages and Design

To obtain high power laser output, side-pumped geometry is more favorable compared to end-pumped geometry as it is able to scale pump power easily with stable thermal distribution, especially under high pump power [23]. Therefore, we designed a diode-side-pumped laser head based on a ceramic diffuse optical reflector (DOR), and the schematic is illustrated in Fig.1. The laser head is composed of a Tm,Ho:YAG rod, a glass flow tube, a DOR, and three pump modules. No guiding elements are used in case of extra optical loss, which makes the laser head extremely compact, rugged, and convenient for adjusting.