High repetition rate Q-switched radially polarized laser with a graphene-based output coupler

We demonstrate a Q-switched radially polarized all-solid-state laser by transferring a graphene film directly onto an output coupler. The laser generates Q-switched radially polarized beam (QRPB) with a pulse width of 192 ns and 2.7W average output power. The corresponding single pulse energy is up to 16.2 mu J with a high repetition rate of 167 kHz. The M-2 factor and the polarization purity are similar to 2.1 and 96%, respectively. Our QRPB source is a simple and low-cost source for a variety of applications, such as industrial material processing, optical trapping, and microscopy. (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.