Influence of Fe3+ impurity ions on the lasing characteristics of Y3Al5O12:Nd:Fe crystals

The influence of Fe³⁺ impurity ions on the lasing characteristics of YAG:Nd:Fe crystals was investigated. The changes in the characteristics were solely due to effects induced by the optical pump radiation. The use of Fe³⁺ → Nd³⁺ sensitization in YAG:Nd:Fe produced an effect similar to that obtained using luminescence niters. Suppression of short-lived color centers and a reduction in the heat release in YAG:Nd crystals coactivated with Fe³⁺ ions was accompanied by increased intracavity losses due to absorption from excited states of Fe³⁺ ions.