Master oscillator with a tunable emission spectrum for a high-power pulsed neodymium laser system

The possibility of controlling the spectral characteristics of pulsed radiation from an Nd glass laser was proposed and analyzed. Spectrally selective losses were introduced in the laser resonator using the Wood polarization monochromator. The results of the analysis were used to construct a master oscillator with active Q switching and emitting nanosecond pulses. The emission spectrum of the master oscillator was a set of equidistant lines 0.38–2 nm wide with a separation of 1.7–6 nm between the lines. The widths of the separate lines, the separations between them, and the position of the maximum of the emission line could be varied by tuning the Wood monochromator.