{"id":802498,"date":"2026-08-04T14:38:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-04T14:38:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/802498\/"},"modified":"2026-08-04T14:38:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-04T14:38:08","slug":"yellow-yag-produces-powerful-pulses-in-les-leftover-laser","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/802498\/","title":{"rendered":"Yellow YAG Produces Powerful Pulses In Les\u2019 Leftover Laser"},"content":{"rendered":"

[Les] likes lasing lasers, and who doesn\u2019t? [Les] likes larger lasers than lots of folks, with his current project being an Nd:YAG (that\u2019s Neodymium:Yttrium Aluminum Garnet) flash pumped laser intended for tattoo removal. Like most of its ilk, the YAG crystal at the heart of that device is a rosy purple color, so when [Les] spotted a Yellow YAG with different doping promising powerful pulses,<\/a> he purchased it promptly.<\/p>\n

Specifically, the retailer was claiming a 30-50% efficiency increase for this yellow rod, thanks to cerium doping. It\u2019s still considered an Nd:YAG, though you can label it as an Nd:Ce:YAG for clarity. The efficiency gain comes from the cerium atom taking unused energy from the flashbulb pulse \u2014 which is much broader-wavelength than the thin absorption line of the Nd ions in the rod \u2014 and giving that energy to the Nd atoms that do the lasing via fluorescence. He doesn\u2019t try it, but reports on a paper showing these crystals can actually lase with reasonable efficiency from sunlight alone, which we\u2019d love to see. Send us a tip<\/a> if you try.<\/p>\n

His original Nd:YAG rod produced 72.8 mJ pulses, while in the same setup with the yellow laser is peaking at 153 mJ, more than double the original output. That\u2019s even better than the 30-50% [Les] expected, but he reckons it is because the old YAG is, well, old. The coatings break down over time, and UV light from the flashbulbs degrades the crystals too. That\u2019s another benefit of tossing cerium in there, as apparently it acts as sunscreen for your laser rod. It lasts longer and works better, making it a no-brainer of an upgrade.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve seen [Les]\u2019s laser-based hacking before, like this\u00a0 diode-laser PSU<\/a> and we\u2019re always glad to take a look with our remaining eye. We also featured his tattoo removal laser back when he started working on it, <\/a>along with less-lasery projects like his crystal-growing rig<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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