An 880-nm Laser-Diode End-Pumped Nd:YVO₄ Slab Laser with a Hybrid Resonator

We present an experimental study of a continuous-wave Nd:YVO₄ laser diode-pumped directly in band at 880 nm. By using a compact positive confocal unstable-stable hybrid resonator, a maximal laser output of 170 W at 1064 nm is realized. The slope efficiency and optical-to-optical efficiency are 56.7% and 51.3%, respectively. The M² factors in the unstable direction and in the stable direction they are 1.9 and 1.3, respectively.