Definition and analysis of the lineshape matching coefficient in diode-pumped alkali vapor lasers

For diode-pumped alkali lasers (DPALs), the matching of lineshape between D2 absorption line and pump light greatly affects the properties of laser output; however, there is rare theoretical study on the quantitative description of the lineshape matching coefficient. In this paper, we put forward a formula to describe the lineshape matching coefficient that represents the matching degree between D2 absorption line and pump light. Dependences of the matching coefficient and optical–optical efficiency on the linewidth ratio between D2 absorption line and pump light, and the center frequency shift of pump light caused by mode hopping are calculated and compared with experimental results in literatures. Results show the definition of lineshape matching coefficient can provide an effective way to improve the pump efficiency of DPALs.