New generation of picosecond Raman lasers and their applications for material processing: from IR to UV

Femtosecond laser technology based on pulse stretching-compressing technique has been demonstrating tremendous achievements [1], but it is still complicated and expensive. In this report we present a new generation of simple and robust high peak power diode-pumped Raman lasers. They are capable of producing laser pulses in picosecond range with pulse repetition rate (PRR) from f=10 Hz to f=7.5 kHz. Passat Ltd. has recently developed Raman lasers operating in three PRR formats: low PRR (1 - 25 Hz), medium PRR (100 Hz - 1 kHz), and high PRR (2.5 - 7.5 kHz). Table 1 shows parameters of Raman lasers supplied with harmonic generators for each of the PRR formats specified above.