Energy transfer and energy level decay processes of Er3+ in water-free tellurite glass

Laercio Gomes, Daniel Rhonehouse, Dan T. Nguyen, Jie Zong, Arturo Chavez-Pirson, Stuart D. Jackson*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This report details the fundamental spectroscopic properties of a new class of water-free tellurite glasses studied for future applications in mid-infrared light generation. The fundamental excited state decay processes relating to the 4I11/24I13/2 transition in singly Er3+-doped Tellurium Zinc Lanthanum glass have been investigated using time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. The excited state dynamics was analyzed for Er2O3 concentrations between 0.5 mol% and 4 mol%. Selective laser excitation of the 4I11/2 energy level at 972 nm and selective laser excitation of the 4I13/2 energy level at 1485 nm has established that in a similar way to other Er3+-doped glasses, a strong energy-transfer upconversion by way of a dipole-dipole interaction between two excited erbium ions in the 4I13/2 level populates the 4I11/2 upper laser level of the 3 μm transition. The 4I13/2 and 4I11/2 energy levels emitted luminescence with peaks located at 1532 nm and 2734 nm respectively with luminescence efficiencies of 100% and 8% for the higher (4 mol.%) concentration sample. Results from numerical simulations showed that a population inversion is reached at a threshold pumping intensity of ∼57 kW cm-2 for a CW laser pump at 976 nm for [Er2O3] = 2 mol.%.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)268-274
Number of pages7
JournalOptical Materials
Volume50
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2015

Keywords

  • Fiber laser
  • Mid-infrared spectroscopy
  • Optical fiber technology
  • Time resolved spectroscopy

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Energy transfer and energy level decay processes of Er3+ in water-free tellurite glass'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this