High Er(III) content ZBN glasses for microchip laser applications

The preparation and properties of zirconium/barium/sodium fluoride glasses containing high Er(III) contents are discussed in detail. Glasses containing up to 33 X 10(20) Er(III) cm(-3) (18 mol%) have 1530 nm fluorescence lifetimes in the region of 10 ms and show no evidence of concentration quenching in their emission at various wavelengths in the infra-red. The lack of substantial concentration quenching was an unexpected result and possible reasons for this are discussed.