Growth and spectral properties of Gd2SiO5 crystal codoped with Er and Yb

Gd2SiO5 (GSO) single crystal codoped with Yb3+ and Er3+ (Abbr. as Er:Yb:GSO) was successfully grown by the Czochralski (CZ) method for the first time and the spectral characteristics were investigated. The absorption and fluorescence spectra were measured. The emission lifetime of the 4I13/2–Er-level was measured to be 5.84 ms and the emission cross-section at 1529 nm was calculated to be 1.03×10−20 cm2. The results indicate that Er:Yb:GSO is a potential laser material at ∼1.55 μm wavelength region.