The role of tungsten oxide in Er3+-doped bismuth-germanate glasses for optical amplification in L-band

• Published in: Scientific reports 2023-05, Vol.13 (1), p.8835-8835, Article 8835
• Main Authors: Çamiçi, Hüseyin Can, Guérineau, Théo, Rivera, V. A. G., Falci, Rodrigo Ferreira, LaRochelle, Sophie, Messaddeq, Younès
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 639/624/1075/1082; 639/624/1075/187; 639/624/399; Bismuth; Calorimetry; Differential scanning calorimetry; Emissions; Humanities and Social Sciences; Ions; multidisciplinary; Raman spectroscopy; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Spectrum analysis; Thermal properties; Tungsten; Tungsten oxide
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-35995-8

A series of novel Er 3+ -doped bismuth-germanate glasses containing different tungsten concentrations with a molar composition of 97.5[(75 − x)GeO 2 –25Bi 2 O 3 –(x)WO 3 ]–2Sb 2 O 3 –0.5Er 2 O 3 (x = 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 mol%) were fabricated. Their thermal properties are measured by differential scanning calorimetry. A structural investigation by Raman spectroscopy suggested that changes occurred in the glass network by WO 3 incorporation. By laser excitation at 980 nm, a strong emission from Er 3+ ions at 1532 nm is observed, while the WO 3 addition caused changes in the emission spectra. The emission cross-section spectra of Er 3+ are calculated by both McCumber and Füchtbauer–Ladenburg theories and their comparison showed these theories yielded slightly different results, but in both cases, the calculations showed that a gain signal in L-band can be achieved when 30% of the Er 3+ ions are at the excited state. This study proves that the Er 3+ -doped bismuth-germanate glasses are suitable for optical fiber amplifier applications operating at C- and L-band.