Status of CdSiP2 development for scaling mid-infrared laser power

Laser sources operating near a wavelength of four microns are important for a broad range of applications that require power scaling beyond the state-of-the-art. The highest power demonstrated in the spectral region from a solid-state laser source is based upon nonlinear optical (NLO) conversion using the NLO crystal ZnGeP2 (ZGP). High-power operation in ZGP is known to be limited by thermal lensing. By comparing the figure of merit for thermal lensing in ZGP with other NLO crystal candidates, CdSiP2 (CSP) particularly offers significant advantages. However as was the case with ZGP during its early development, the physics of observed crystal defects, and their relevance to power scaling, was not at first sufficiently understood to improve the crystal’s characteristics as a NLO wavelength conversion element. During the past decade, significant progress has been made (1) with the first reported growth of a large CSP crystals, (2) in understanding the crystal’s characteristics and its native defects, (3) in improving growth and processing techniques for producing large, low-loss crystals, and (4) in demonstrating CSP’s potential for generating high-power mid-infrared laser light. The paper will summarize this progress.