Generation of ultraviolet light using the Nd:YAG laser

High-power pulses of ultraviolet light of wavelength 266 nm have been produced by frequency doubling the 1064-nm wavelength of Nd:YAG to 532 nm using lithium iodate and frequency doubling this green light to 266 nm by using ammonium dihydrogen phosphate (ADP). A peak power of 310 W at 266 nm was obtained in a single Gaussian transverse mode representing a 54 percent peak conversion of incident 532-nm light. At a repetition rate of 1 kHz the average UV power is about 35 mW. The pulses are approximately triangular with a pulse width of 250 ns. This is a new source of high-power high repetition-rate coherent ultraviolet light.