130 mJ compact diode side-pumped Tm:Ho:YAG laser at 2.1 μm

A compact high energy co-doped Tm:Ho:YAG Q-switched laser side-pumped by the 785 nm quasi-continuous wave (QCW) laser diodes (LDs) at room temperature is demonstrated. Up to 130 mJ output energy at 2.1 μm has been generated, operating at 5 Hz repetition rate with a pulse duration of 73.7 ns. The average beam quality factor of M2 is measured to be ∼3.5. This laser has a simple design and compact structure, which is very suitable for many applications. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest output energy for LDs pumped single rod Tm:Ho:YAG laser.