| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1522306 | Materials Chemistry and Physics | 2014 | 6 Pages |
•High quality LiYF4:Er3+/Nd3+ single crystals are prepared by a Bridgman method.•Concentration effect of Nd3+ ion on the spectroscopic properties are discussed.•The energy transfer efficiencies for the two ions are calculated via the lifetimes.•Inokuti–Hirayama model is used to analyze the cross relaxation process.
High quality Er3+/Nd3+:LiYF4 single crystals were grown by a Bridgman method. Their spectroscopic properties were studied to understand the Nd3+ concentration effect upon excitation of an 800 nm laser diode. The intensest 2.7 μm emission was observed in the LiYF4 crystal codoped with 0.99 mol% Er3+ and 0.62 mol% Nd3+. Meanwhile, the emission intensity for the green up-conversion and 1.5 μm downconversion of Er3+ decreased with increasing of the Nd3+ concentration. The modified Inokuti–Hirayama model was used to analyze the decay curves of the 1.06 (Nd3+) and 1.5 (Er3+) μm emissions. The results indicated that the energy transfer process (Er3+:4I13/2 + Nd3+:4I9/2 → Er3+:4I15/2 + Nd3+:4I15/2) is mainly due to the electric dipole–dipole interaction. The energy transfer efficiencies between Nd3+ and Er3+ ions were calculated. All results suggested that the Er3+/Nd3+:LiYF4 single crystals may have potential applications in mid-infrared lasers.
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