Effects of yttrium codoping on fluorescence lifetimes of Er3+ ions in SiO2–Al2O3 sol–gel glasses

In order to find a new glass host and optimize erbium doping for IR glass optical amplifiers in photonic applications, a study on the optimization of the emission of erbium ions in the SiO 2 -Al 2 O 3 glass by codoping with Y 2 O 3 is performed. It is first attempted to make a new sol-gel glass host based on SiO 2 , Al 2 O 3 , and Y 2 O 5 doped with Er 3+ ions of the composition (1-x)Si02-xAl 2 O 3 -uY 2 O 3 :0.65Er 2 O 3 (in mol%), x varies from 0 to 65, and y from 0 to 4. The optimal proportion in mol% of SiO 2 and Al 2 O 3 for the Er 3+ emission (at a fixed optimal concentration of 0.65) was 65 - 35. The effect of Y 2 O 3 content on photoluminescence, decay curve profiles and lifetime of the 4 O 13/2 level of Er 3+ in SiO 2 -Al 2 O 3 glass is observed. The largest quantum efficiency and the higher emission intensity are observed in the sample with 65Al 2 O 3 and 4Y 2 O 3 . The emission intensity at 1530 nm is two times higher than in glasses without Y 2 O 3 . A shift of 3 nm to shorter wavelengths is observed. The emission spectral profiles are flatter and broader for the glasses containing Al and Y (bandwidth of 59.5 nm). The decay curves show strong difference profiles for the different samples. The increase of the lifetime value T (about ms) of the 4 I 13/2 level of Er 3+ in the SiO 2 -Al 2 I 3 with the Y 2 O 3 is discussed.