Growth, spectroscopic characteristics and laser potential of Yb3+:Ca3La2(BO3)4 crystal

Abstract

Crystal of Yb3+-doped Ca3La2(BO3)4 has been grown by the Czochralski technique. The room temperature absorption and fluorescence spectra of the crystal have been investigated. The result showed that this crystal exhibits broad absorption and emission with the FWHM of 11 nm at 978 nm and 66 nm FWHM at 1025 nm, respectively. The stimulated emission cross-section of Yb3+ ions were calculated using the reciprocity method and Fuchtbauer-Ladenburg method, respectively. The room temperature fluorescence decay curves of 2 F 5/2 manifold of Yb3+ ions were recorded for both crystal and powder samples. The effect of radiation tapping on the spectroscopic properties is discussed. The result that the lifetime of the powder sample is shorter than that of the bulk sample demonstrates the existence of radiation trapping effect. The laser potentiality was also evaluated and the results show that this crystal is a good candidate for tunable and ultrashort pulse lasers.