Erbium Doped GaN Lasers by Optical Pumping

Studying ER:GaN materials under 980 nm resonant excitation could guide future crystal growth.

Army Research Office, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina

The main objective of this research was to construct an optical pump system that would allow the study of Er:GaN materials under 980 nm resonant excitation to be carried out. The results obtained from the optically pumped studies could then be utilized to guide crystal growth and laser design.

High energy and high power solid-state lasers have enabled a variety of applications which have had, and will continue to have, profound and far-reaching impacts on emerging technologies. The optical gain medium is the heart of a high energy laser (HEL) system.