Spectroscopic and magneto-optical characteristics of erbium doped cerium trifluoride crystal grown by the Bridgman method

In this study, a 2 at% erbium doped cerium trifluoride (Er:CeF3) single crystal was grown using the Bridgman method. The consequent absorption, infrared transmittance, and fluorescence spectra were recorded. The spectroscopic properties of Er:CeF3 crystals were intensively studied based on the Judd-Ofelt (J-O) theory. The Omega 2, Omega 4, and Omega 6 parameters were fitted to be 5.206 x 10-20, 1.805 x 10-20, and 3.06 x 10-20 cm2, respectively. The emission cross-section centered at 1564.6 nm was calculated to be 1.053 x 10-20 cm2, and the corresponding fluorescence lifetime was measured to be 1.675 ms. Additionally, the magneto-optical (MO) performance of the Er:CeF3 crystal was investigated for the first time. The Verdet constants of Er:CeF3 at 532, 632.8, 1064, and 1310 nm are 231.0, 165.4, 43.4, and 24.4 radmiddotT-1middotm-1, respectively, which are significantly higher than those of pure CeF3 and traditional Tb3Ga5O12. The results show that the Er:CeF3 crystal can be applied both to solid-state lasers and Faraday devices. (c) 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

In this study, a 2 at% erbium doped cerium trifluoride (Er:CeF3) single crystal was grown using the Bridgman method, and its spectroscopic properties and magneto-optical performance were intensively investigated. The experimental results demonstrate that the Er:CeF3 crystal has potential applications in solid-state lasers and Faraday devices.