Fabrication, microstructure and optical properties of Er3+:YAG glass–ceramics

We have developed a novel glass–ceramic material containing Er3+:YAG micro-crystals as the only crystalline phase by simple crystallization process of a glass in an Y2O3–Al2O3–SiO2-based system. While Y2Si2O7, Y4.67(SiO4)3O, LiAlSiO4 and LiAlSi2O6 crystal phases were observed in glass–ceramics by lower crystallizing temperatures, single-phase YAG micro-crystals were precipitated by crystallizing the glass above 1350 °C. The YAG particle sizes were around 5 μm in average and dispersed homogeneously in the glass-matrix. From the energy dispersive X-ray analysis, the Er ions were found to be introduced selectively in the YAG micro-crystals. By 970 nm excitation, the glass ceramic showed a broad-band photoluminescence in the 1450–1670 nm range, which is characteristic to the 4I13/2 → 4I15/2 transition in the Er:YAG crystal, compared with the conventional silica-based glasses, and each emission line-width was broader than that of Er:YAG polycrystal.