Single aperiodically poled lithium niobate for simultaneous laser Q switching and second-harmonic generation in a 1342 nm Nd:YVO₄ laser

We report the design and experimental demonstration of an electro-optically Q-switched intracavity second-harmonic generator (ISHG) based on a single aperiodically poled lithium niobate (APLN) in a 1342 nm Nd:YVO₄ laser. This intracavity APLN, designed using the aperiodic optical superlattice technique, can perform simultaneously as a laser Q switch and a second-harmonic generator. At ∼200 V Q-switching voltage and a 5 kHz switching rate, we measured a pulse energy of ∼5.7 μJ and a peak power of ∼700 W at 671 nm from the constructed ISHG with a 5.2 W diode power based on 51% fundamental energy depletion.