Optical properties of and concentration quenching in Bi2O3–B2O3–Ga2O3 glasses

Abstract Er 2 O 3 -doped Bi 2 O 3 –B 2 O 3 –Ga 2 O 3 glasses were prepared by the conventional melt-quenching method, and the Er 3+ : 4 I 13/2 → 4 I 15/2 fluorescence properties are studied for different Er 3+ concentrations. when the Er 2 O 3 concentration increases from 0.03 to 3.0 mol%, the measured lifetime of Er 3+ : 4 I 13/2 level decrease from 2.24 to 0.9 m s, and from 0.25 to 0.20 m s for the Er 3+ : 4 I 11/2 level. The fast energy migration among Er 3+ ions cause the reduction of lifetime of the 4 I 13/2 level, whereas the change in the 4 I 11/2 level is mainly due to a cooperative upconversion process ( 4 I 11/2 , 4 I 11/2 ) → ( 4 F 7/2 , 4 I 15/2 ). Based on the dipole–dipole interaction theory, the interaction parameter, C Er,Er , for the migration rate of Er 3+ : 4 I 13/2 ↔ 4 I 13/2 was calculated to be 32 × 10 −40 cm 6 s −1 .