Chromium aluminum carbide as Q-switcher for the near-infrared erbium-doped fiber laser

• Main Authors: Najm, M. M., Nizamani, B., Zhang, P., Arof, H., Al-Hiti, A. S., Rosol, A. H. A., Paul, M. C., Yasin, M., Harun, S. W.
• Format: Article
• Published: Elsevier GMBH 2022
• Subjects: RE Ophthalmology
• Online Access: http://eprints.um.edu.my/33682/

In this study, chromium aluminum carbide (Cr2AlC) is reported as a new saturable absorber (SA) to produce nanosecond pulse Q-switched laser. Cr2AlC belongs to the group of MAX-phases materials that have recently emerged as potential SAs in the field of fiber lasers. Here, the Cr2AlC powder was added to polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) liquid solution to prepare a Cr2AlC-PVA thin-film based SA. A small piece of Cr2AlC thin-film was incorporated with an erbium-doped fiber laser (EDFL) cavity to produce Q-switching pulses. The obtained pulses from the Qswitched laser-produced pulse width between 995 ns and 780 ns having a repetition frequency of 108-132 kHz, with a rise in pump power from 117 mW to 167 mW. At 167 mW pump power, the pulse energy and output power obtained to be 9 nJ and 1.134 mW, respectively.