ABSTRACT
References 282
1. BACKGROUND
1.1. Laser Instrumentation and Properties
The neodymium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Nd:YAG) laser was developed by Geusic
and colleagues in 1964 (1). Neodymium ions were introduced to the host crystal YAG
and powered by a xenon arc lamp, a flashlamp pump consisting of a quartz tube containing
xenon gas and fitted with two electrodes. A continuous high-density electrical discharge
passes through the xenon gas and the emitted light is coupled via optical resonators into
the gain medium (atoms predominantly in an excited rather than a resting state). This
results in stimulated emission and the net release of energy as additional photons (2).
