Nd : Y2O3 single-crystal fiber laser: Room-temperature cw operation at 1.07- and 1.35-μm wavelength

Abstract

Single-crystal fibers have been grown from high-purity 1.5 wt% Nd2O3 : Y2O3 powder mixtures, and short lengths of the fiber in dielectric mirror resonators have been evaluated as lasers at both 1.07- and 1.35-μm wavelength. The laser transition cross sections were approximately equal at the two wavelengths, and they were about two-thirds the cross section of Nd : YAG at 1.31 μm. The fluorescence lifetime of the laser samples was 340 μsec. Loss in the material was approximately 3% per cm. The absorption spectrum from 0.7 to 1.0 μm and fluorescence spectra for the 4F3/2→4I9/2, 4F3/2→4I11/2, and 4F3/2→4I13/2 manifolds of Nd3+ in Y2O3, taken with fiber samples, are reproduced in detail. The resultant energy levels are given. With a Kr laser operating at 0.7525 μm as the end pump, minimum observed laser threshold was 0.57 mW absorbed pump power for a 100-μm-diam 2.5-mm-long fiber operating cw in room-temperature air at 1.07 μm. The lasers operated in one or two transverse modes and had active linewidths of approximately 2 Å.

Single crystal and transparent ceramic Nd-doped oxide laser materials: a comparative spectroscopic investigation

“…However, owing to the selection rules for electric dipole optical transitions for these sites, the optical spectra of the rare earth ions will contain mostly contribution from the ions in C 2 sites. The positions of the spectral lines corresponding to the isolated Nd ions in the C 2 sites of Nd:Y 2 O 3 ceramics [26] are similar to those reported previously for single crystals [27,28]. Additional lines, corresponding to Nd in C 3i sites are also observed.…”

The effects of Li on the near-infrared luminescence properties of Nd3+/ Li+ codoped Y2O3 nanocrystals

“…Y 2 O 3 has been investigated for a long time as an attractive host for trivalent rare earth ion due to its superior properties such as refractory nature, stability, ruggedness, and optical transparency over a broad spectral range [1][2][3]. In particular, the thermal conductivity of Y 2 O 3 is about 20%-30% larger than that of YAG (Yttrium Aluminium Garnet) while the thermal expansion coefficients are nearly the same [4][5][6].…”

Eu3+ addition effect on the stability and crystallinity of fiber single crystal and nano-structured Y2O3 oxide

“…Recently Y 2 O 3 was grown by Czochralskis' technique using rhenium crucible [9]. Much research was done to improve Y 2 O 3 crystal qualities [10][11][12], but even now a lot of problems exist to optimize the Y 2 O 3 crystal growth and the subject is still open. In addition, Y 2 O 3 :Eu 3+ materials in the powder form could be of interest as an efficient red-emission phosphor for use in fluorescent light [13,14].…”

“…Recently, it has been applied widely in high resolution and projection TV's, projection devices and low-voltage display such as cathode ray tube, plasma display panels and field emission displays [15,16]. Because of these properties a lot of effort was made to grow undoped and doped-yttrium oxide [8][9][10][11][12] and many soft chemistry methods have been used to synthesize Y 2 O 3 powders [17][18][19]. Quite often, the used crystals for the optical applications are doped with rare-earth (RE 3+ ) to generate the needed application.…”