MXenes, a new family of two-dimensional materials, were prepared by a selective chemical etching method and the saturation absorption characteristics were measured using the Z-scan method. At 1.06 μm, a passively Q-switched Nd:YAG ceramic laser was operated by using MXene Ti3C2Tx as a saturable absorber successfully for the first time. At an absorbed pump power of 4.14 W, the pulse repetition
... [Show full abstract] rate was 186 kHz and the minimum pulse width was 359 ns. The maximal peak power and single-pulse energy were 2.04 W and 0.66 μJ respectively. This study demonstrates that MXenes show promise as saturable absorbers in laser technology.