Crystal growth, characterization of NdTaO4: A new promising stoichiometric neodymium laser material

A new stoichiometric NdTaO4 (NTO) crystal was grown by the Czochralski (CZ) method for the first time to our knowledge. Parameters of the space group, lattice parameters, crystal cell volume and density for the as-grown NTO crystal were determined by Rietveld refinement of the X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) patterns. The NTO single crystal had a high crystalline quality as determined by X-ray rocking curve (XRC) analysis. Its chemical composition was found to be consistent with the molecular formula of NdTaO4 as determined from X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The absorption, fluorescence spectra and other optically relevant properties of NTO were also investigated and compared with the well known Nd:YAG and some other stoichiometric neodymium laser crystal materials. The large absorption coefficient with broad full width at half-maximum (FWHM) as well as the relatively strong emission spectra indicate that the new stoichiometric NTO crystal is a promising material for microchip lasers.