Photoluminescence and laser behavior of Yb:YAG ceramic

Yb:YAG transparent ceramics with different doping concentration were fabricated by the traditional solid-state diffusion route, and their fluorescence properties and laser behavior were investigated. It is found that both the fluorescence intensity and lifetime depend deeply on both the doping concentration of Yb ions and the annealing treatment. The continuous wavelength (C.W.) laser performance for 10 at.% Yb:YAG ceramic suggests that both the threshold pump power and slope efficiency increase with increasing transmittance of the output couple (Toc). For Toc = 15%, the threshold pump power is about 6.1 W, the slope efficiency is 25%, and the maximum output power of 2.2 W is achieved when pumped by 14.9 W.

► Yb:YAG ceramics with various doping level are fabricated by vacuum sintering method.
► The dependence of fluorescence properties on Yb concentration are investigated.
► The influence of annealing treatment on fluorescence properties is also demonstrated.
► Laser output are realized on 10 at.% Yb:YAG ceramic with various output couplers.