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Definition: the tendency of some lasers to emit spikes of output power, particularly after being switched on
When the pump power of a laser (particularly a solid-state laser) is suddenly switched on, the laser output power may exhibit several spikes, i.e. energetic pulses, before it approaches its steady-state value via relaxation oscillations, as shown in Figure 1. Similar effects occur when the resonator losses are suddenly reduced, after some time where the gain medium was pumped (→ Q switching).
The duration of the first spike can be of the order of a few times the resonator round-trip time, and is thus often as short as a few tens of nanoseconds. Subsequent spikes then become longer and longer. The repetition frequency of the spikes (sometimes called the spiking frequency) is of the same order of magnitude as the relaxation oscillation frequency.
Figure 1: Turn-on dynamics of a laser, simulated with the software RP Q-switch. It is assumed that the pump power is suddenly switched on. Before the steady state is reached, the laser emits a number of spikes and undergoes damped relaxation oscillations.
Figure 2: Phase space representation of the same dynamics as in Figure 1. After turning on, the operation point starts a revolution along the outer curve in counter-clockwise direction, in order then gradually to approach the steady state with smaller and smaller excursions of gain and output power.
Pronounced spiking occurs for lasers where the upper-state lifetime is much larger than the cavity damping time. This is the case for, e.g., solid-state lasers based on ion-doped crystals or glasses, particularly when built with a short laser resonator. Spiking may then be reduced, but hardly suppressed altogether, with electronic feedback systems. Gas lasers often operate in an entirely different regime, with the upper-state lifetime being substantially smaller than the cavity damping time, so that spiking phenomena do not occur.
See also: laser dynamics, relaxation oscillations, solid-state lasers, stabilization of lasers
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