A laser with a wide continuous wavelength tuning range is desirable for optimized selective photothermolysis (SP) laser surgeries that treat light-absorptive lesions and unwanted pigments in human tissue with minimal collateral damages. However, current SP laser surgical systems are limited to a few lasing lines including 1024 nm by Nd:YAG, 755 nm by Alexandrite, 694 nm by Ruby, and 532 nm by second harmonic generation of 1064 nm. This invention discloses techniques to implement a high power, tunable optical parametric oscillator (OPO) system for demanding SP applications such as laser tattoo removal. In addition to wavelength tuning, the OPO laser system's output pulse energy, pulse duration, and pulse-train duration are also adjustable by tuning the pump laser pulse energy, pump laser pulse duration, and pump laser pulse-train duration for optimizing SP laser surgical outcomes.
