PHYSICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION OF Er3+:Yb3Al5O12 THIN FILMS FROM SOL-GEL DERIVED TARGETS

Although ytterbium aluminum garnets (YbAG) belong to a group of promising optical materials, no physical method of thin films deposition has been described so far. In this work we present the comparison of two valuable physical deposition techniques: pulsed laser deposition and electron beam evaporation. Erbium (Er 3+ ) doped ytterbium garnet (Er 0.005 Yb 0.995 ) 3 Al 5 O 12 (Er:YbAG) thin films were prepared using own sol-gel derived ceramic targets. The phase composition of the films and crystallite size were determined using X-ray diffraction. Microstructure and surface morphology were studied by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. Deposition parameters of used methods were optimized; however, both techniques produced amorphous films with insufficient microstructure. The effect of additional annealing on the crystallinity and luminescent properties of erbium ions was studied. A pure infrared emission of Er 3+ ions was observed only in samples prepared by pulsed laser deposition with subsequent annealing.