HGO grows Ho:YLF
laser crystals using Czochralski technology. Ho:YLF is a very attractive laser
material, because the lifetime of the upper laser level is much longer ( ~ 14
ms) than in Ho:YAG and the emission cross sections are higher. Additionally the
thermal lens in Ho:YLF is much weaker, which helps to generate diffraction
limited beams even under intense end-pumping.
The primary
advantage of directly pumping the Ho 5I7 is that it does not have to depend on energy
transfer, which lends itself to various radiative and non-radiative losses.
Up-conversion losses that have deleterious effect in high-energy Q-switched
lasers are eliminated.
