Dy3+-doped phosphate glass fibers for yellow lasers

Abstract

We report on the fabrication and characterization of Dy3+-doped phosphate glass fibers for applications in yellow lasers. The fibers (core/cladding diameters: 11/125μm) were fabricated in the system P2O5–Al2O3–Ba2O–K2O with their core doped with 0.12 at.% Dy3+. For bulk glass, the absorption cross-section σabs is 0.11×10-20 cm2 at 452.4nm (absorption bandwidth: 8.4nm), in the range well addressed by blue GaN laser diodes. The transition probabilities for Dy3+ ions are calculated using the Judd-Ofelt theory. The stimulated-emission cross-section in the yellow σSE is 0.36×10-20 cm2 at 574.1nm, and the luminescence lifetime for the 4F9/2 manifold is 818μs, indicating a luminescence quantum efficiency close to unity. μ-Raman and μ-luminescence mapping was performed over the fiber end-facet indicating a homogeneous core composition and a uniform distribution of Dy3+ ions.