Transient thermal profile in optically pumped laser rods

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Abstract
Expressions are derived for the transient temperature distribution in optically pumped cylindrical laser rods for single‐shot and repetitively pulsed operations. The analysis is performed for both solid and hollow cylindrical laser rods. The solutions are evaluated numerically and temperature histories applicable to a wide range of system parameters are presented graphically. The computations show the dependence of the transient thermal profile on the cooling condition of the rod. The results reveal that in practical situations (cooling factor: A = 2 to 10) the thermal relaxation processes are considerably slower than in the case where a zero thermal impedance (A = ∞) between the rod surface and the cooling fluid is assumed. This explains the discrepancy which existed between the theory and measured decay times of thermal effects in laser rods.