The effect of melt-homogenization and heat-treatment on the optical properties of the rare earth doped oxyfluoride glass-ceramics

We prepared four Er3+-Yb3+ co-doped oxyfluoride precursor glass (PG) samples with the same chemical composition at different melt-homogenization temperatures (T-homo), respectively, at the same melt-quenching rate. We investigated the effect of Thomo and heat-treatment (HT) on the crystallization, structure, and optical properties of the four samples. The results show that the structural heterogeneity in the PG sample increases with lowering T-homo, and this promotes phase-separation, and hence, formation of Ba2LaF7 crystals. Consequently, the light transmittance of PG samples is decreased, but the up-conversion (UC) luminescence is enhanced. Moreover, the crystallinity of the four PG samples was increased by HT, and this altered the light transmittance, and greatly enhanced the UC luminescence. The mechanism of these discovered phenomena was discussed in terms of structure and crystal evolution. This work provides an effective way to optimize the optical and photonic performances of the rare earth doped oxyfluoride glass-ceramics.

Automated summary

This study investigates the effect of melt-homogenization temperature and heat-treatment on the crystallization, structure, and optical properties of Er3+-Yb3+ co-doped oxyfluoride precursor glass. The results show that adjusting these parameters can enhance the up-conversion luminescence and optimize the optical and photonic performances of the glass-ceramics.