Growth, thermal, and spectroscopic properties of a Cr,Yb,Ho,Eu:YAP laser crystal

Abstract A new Cr,Yb,Ho,Eu:YAlO 3 (YAP) laser crystal was successfully grown by the Czochralski method. Thermal properties were investigated along the a , b , and c crystalline axes. Results indicate that the Cr,Yb,Ho,Eu:YAP crystal has large anisotropic thermal expansion and that the suitable crystal growth direction is the b axis. The Debye temperatures were fitted, and the lattice vibration frequencies were calculated. Spectroscopic measurements show that Cr 3+ and Yb 3+ can be used as sensitizers of Ho 3+ ions, and Eu 3+ ions can play a role of the deactivator in decreasing the lifetime of laser lower level 5 I 7 from 8.69 ms to 1.89 ms, which is beneficial in decreasing laser threshold and increasing laser conversion efficiency. All these findings suggest that the Cr,Yb,Ho,Eu:YAP crystal is a new potential candidate for realizing 2.8–3 μm laser output pumped by a 970 nm laser diode or pulsed flash lamp.