Measurement of stress-induced birefringence ina thin-disk laser with full-Stokes polarimetry

Stress-induced birefringence leads to losses in solid-state laser resonators and amplifiers with polarized output beams. A model of stress-induced birefringence in thin disks is presented, as well as measurements ofstress-induced birefringence in a thin disk in a multi-kilowatt oscillator. A full-Stokes imaging polarimeter was developed to enable fast and accurate polarimetric measurements. Experimental and simulated results are in good agreement qualitatively and quantitatively and show that the polarization loss due to stress-induced birefringence is negligible for ytterbium-doped thin disks with a thickness around 100 mu m but becomes relevant in thicker disks. It is concluded, that stress-induced, birefringence should be taken into consideration when designing a thin-disk laser system. (C) 2022 Optics Publishing Group