Crystal growth, thermal and laser properties of Yb:CTGS single crystal

The catangasite Ca3TaGa3Si2O14 (CTGS) single crystal is considered to be a promising self-frequency-doubling material for visible lasers. In this work, a CTGS single crystal with Yb-doping was successfully grown by the Czochralski method for the first time. The as-grown crystal showed yellowish coloration. The temperature dependent thermal properties, such as thermal expansion, specific heat, thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity, were systematically investigated. The anisotropy of thermal expansion is rather small. Furthermore, its thermal conductivity is comparable to those well-known self-frequency-doubling laser crystals. In laser operation, a maximum continuous wave output power of 4.2 W at the wavelength of 1047 nm was obtained under the output coupler of 5%. These characteristics are very beneficial to laser applications.