Simultaneous determination of gain parameters in steady state lasers

The optical gain parameters of pulsed steady-state lasers, such as dye and excimer lasers, are determined from a single set of experiments from either a laser oscillator or an amplifier. The gain parameters determined by this technique are the small-signal gain coefficient, the saturation intensity for stimulated emission, the saturation fluence for stimulated emission, and the non-saturable absorption coefficient. The measured saturation properties of laser amplifiers and oscillators are used in a data fitting routine that finds all of the gain parameters simultaneously. The values of the gain parameters are determined with greater accuracy than by the conventional methods of measuring each of the parameters individually. The knowledge of the values of all the gain parameters allows for the determination of fluorescence lifetime of a gain medium.