Development of Saturable Absorbers for Laser Passive Q-Switching near 1.5 μm Based on Transparent Ceramic Co2+:MgAl2O4

We describe the development of a reasonable cost Co2+:MgAl2O4 transparent ceramic plates fabrication technology that allows the producing of parts functioning as passive laser Q‐switches in the 1.3–1.7 μm domain. The main relevant material characteristics were measured. The absorption band, positioned between 1.2 and 1.7 μm, is typical of the 4A2 (4F) → 4T1 (4F) transition of Co2+ substituting Mg2+ ions in their Td symmetry sites. The measured ground‐state absorption cross section σgs = 2.9 × 10−19 cm2, saturation contrast γ = 0.12, and depleted ground‐state recovery time τ2 = 110–430 ns render such parts suitable for the intended application. The radiative lifetime was estimated as τ2rad=14.25μs. The spin‐orbit splitting constant was estimated as ξSL≅−150 cm−1 for the 4F parent ground state, and ξSL ≅ –575 cm−1 for the 4P parent excited state. Obtained specimens had a transmission of ~80% (t = 2 mm, λ = 600 nm) and included some opaque, white spots. Further improvement of host optical transmission and resistance to laser damage are necessary.