  We report on the observation of high efficiency frequency doubling of 1550 nm
continuous-wave laser light in a nonlinear cavity containing a periodically
poled potassium titanyl phosphate crystal (PPKTP). The fundamental field had a
power of 1.10 W and was converted into 1.05 W at 775 nm, yielding a total
external conversion efficiency of (95 \pm 1)%. The latter value is based on the
measured depletion of the fundamental field being consistent with the absolute
values derived from numerical simulations. According to our model, the
conversion efficiency achieved was limited by the non-perfect mode-matching
into the nonlinear cavity and the pump power available. Our result shows that
cavity-assisted frequency conversion based on PPKTP is well suited for
low-decoherence frequency conversion of quantum states of light.
