Pulse duration adjusted by changing the cavity length with a multi-pass cavity in a Q-switched Nd:YAG laser.

We report a compact, long nanosecond (ns) pulse duration stretched laser source by a multi-pass cavity (MPC). Based on the combination of the MPC and pump power, a high-power high beam quality 1064 nm Q-switched Nd:YAG laser with a pulse duration adjustable over the range of 160-1000 ns was obtained at a pulse repetition frequency of 10 kHz for the first time, to the best of our knowledge. At a typical pulse width of 560 ns, an average output power of 10.6 W was successfully achieved. The beam quality factor M-2 was measured to be 1.45 with a good Gaussian mode. (C) 2019 Optical Society of America