Crystal-field analysis of the energy levels and spectroscopic characteristics of Nd³⁺in YVO₄

Abstract

Based on the method previously proposed by the authors, the crystal-field analysis and investigation of the polarization and relative intensities of transitions between the sublevels 4F3/2 to 4I13/2, 4I11/2 and 4I9/2 in Nd3+:YVO4 crystals have been performed, in which the Nd3+ ions occupy positions with point symmetry D2d. The predicted polarization characteristics of all the emission lines under discussion are in complete agreement with those observed in experiments by other authors, and the emission lines with highest or comparatively high calculated intensities correspond to the laser emission lines that have been realized. In these calculations, the effect of seventh-order odd crystal field on the emission intensities was first omitted and then estimated by the method suggested by Judd in 1962. It turned out that this effect should be taken into account explicitly and cannot be completely made up only by multiplying a factor suggested by Judd. However, the simple method introduced can be seen as useful in the study of new laser crystals.