Yb 3+ /Tm 3+ /Ho 3+ tri-doped silica-based glass: intense up-conversion and broad near-infrared emission

The Yb 3+ /Tm 3+ /Ho 3+ tri-doped silica-based glasses are firstly prepared by the CO 2 laser sintering method. The up-conversion (UC) luminescence and near-infrared emission properties are investigated under 980 nm excitation. Broad emission band with the full width at half maximum of 400 nm within the infrared spectral region around 2 μm is obtained. In addition, the energy transfer mechanism among Yb 3+ , Tm 3+ , and Ho 3+ are discussed in detail. The experimental results show that the Yb/Tm/Ho tri-doped silica-based glasses prepared by the CO 2 laser sintering method can be the potential materials for white light source and infrared laser operating at 2 μm.