Crystallization of 21.25Gd2O3–63.75MoO3–15B2O3 glass induced by femtosecond laser at the repetition rate of 250kHz

Abstract We report the formation of β′-Gd2(MoO4)3 (GMO) crystal on the surface of the 21.25Gd2O3–63.75MoO3–15B2O3 glass, induced by 250 kHz, 800 nm femtosecond laser irradiation. The morphology of the modified region in the glass was clearly examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). By micro-Raman spectra, the laser-induced crystals were confirmed to be GMO phases and it is found that these crystals have a strong dependence on the number and power of the femtosecond laser pulses. When the irradiation laser power was 900 mW, not only the Raman peaks of GMO crystals but also some new peaks at 214 cm−1, 240 cm−1, 466 cm−1, 664 cm−1 and 994 cm−1which belong to the MoO3 crystals were observed. The possible mechanisms are proposed to explain these phenomena.