Method for preparing high-purity REE-doped chalcogenide glasses for bulk and fiber lasers operating at ∼ 5μm region

A method for preparing high purity rare earth elements (REEs) doped chalcogenide glasses, in which all com-ponents of the charge (Ge, Sb, Ga, Se) and REEs are loaded and subjected to additional purification by combining reactive distillation of germanium and antimony selenides and chemical vapor transport (CVT) of gallium and REE iodides under high vacuum conditions, is proposed. The technique is tested in the preparation of Ga5Ge20Sb10Se65 glass doped with (1-20)center dot 10(19) at center dot cm(-3) Ce, Pr, Nd, Tb, Dy. In the best glass samples, the content of impurities was as following: metals - 0.03-4 ppm(wt), hydrogen - 0.01 ppm(wt), heterogeneous micron sized inclusions < 102 cm(-3). The novel high purity level of Ce3+ and Tb3+ doped glasses made it possible to achieve reproducible practically significant characteristics of laser generation power in the 4.5-5.9 mu m range in bulk samples and optical fibers in pulsed and continuous modes at room temperature.

Automated summary

A method for preparing high purity rare earth elements (REEs) doped chalcogenide glasses by combining reactive distillation and chemical vapor transport under high vacuum conditions is proposed. The technique was successfully tested in the preparation of Ga5Ge20Sb10Se65 glass doped with Ce, Pr, Nd, Tb, and Dy. The high purity level of the doped glasses allowed for reproducible laser generation power in the 4.5-5.9 μm range in both bulk samples and optical fibers at room temperature.