Growth and spectroscopic properties of ytterbium-doped lanthanum calcium borate (Yb3+:La2CaB10O19) crystal

A new ytterbium-doped lanthanum calcium borate crystal (Yb3+:La2CaB10O19, Yb:LCB) has been grown by the flux method. The spectroscopic properties have been investigated and the fundamental spectral parameters for Yb:LCB crystal have been calculated. Yb:LCB crystal has the strongest absorption at 976 nm with a full-width at half-maximum of 14 nm. The absorption and emission cross-sections are 1.16 × 10−20 and 3.51 × 10−20 cm2, respectively. The fluorescence lifetime is 0.95 ms. The ground-state energy level splitting is calculated to be 640 cm−1. In comparison with other Yb-doped laser crystals, the calculated parameters show that Yb:LCB crystal satisfies the fundamental spectral condition for laser emission.