Passively Q-Switched 2.95-μm Bulk Laser Based on Rhenium Disulfide as Saturable Absorber

Rhenium disulfide (ReS2), one of the typical representatives of 2D layered transition metals dichalcogenide materials, has attracted widespread attention for its optical modulation properties in lasers. In this letter, a high-quality ReS2 nanosheet film-based saturable absorber (SA) was successfully prepared by a liquid phase exfoliation method and employed into a passively Q-switched Ho,Pr:LiLuF4 bulk laser operating at 2.95 mu m. The maximum output power of 103 mW was obtained with the shortest pulse duration of 676 ns and a repetition rate of 91.5 kHz, corresponding to the single pulse energy of 1.13 mu J and a pulse peak power of 1.67 W, respectively. The results indicate that ReS2 is a promising SA for mid-infrared pulse generation.