Efficient enhancement of bismuth near infrared luminescence by the co-doping of tantalum in GYAP crystal.

ABSTRACT

Bi/Ta double doped Gd0.1Y0.9AlO3 (Bi/TaGYAP) near-infrared (NIR) laser crystal was successfully grown. The codoping of Ta5+ was demonstrated to effectively enhance the NIR fluorescence emission in Bi/TaGYAP crystal for the first time. The introduced Ta5+ ion can induce the change of valence states from Bi3+ to Bi+ based on the charge compensation mechanism, bringing about the enhanced NIR fluorescence emission. The three NIR fluorescence emission peaks centering at 1005, 1195, and 1280 nm were ascribed to three different Bi+ active centers in Bi/TaGYAP crystal. These results suggest that the Bi/TaGYAP crystal may have potential applications in NIR broadband lasers.