Structural changes induced on strontium barium niobate glass by femtosecond laser irradiation

• Published in: Applied physics. A, Materials science & processing Materials science & processing, 2010-03, Vol.98 (4), p.879-884
• Main Authors: Haro-González, P., Martín, I. R., González-Pérez, S., Martin, L. L., Lahoz, F., Puerto, D., Solís, J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amorphous materials, glasses and other disordered solids; Amplifiers; Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Condensed Matter Physics; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Erbium; Exact sciences and technology; Femtosecond; Glass; Growth from solid phases (including multiphase diffusion and recrystallization); Irradiation; Lasers; Machines; Manufacturing; Materials science; Methods of crystal growth; physics of crystal growth; Nanotechnology; Optical and Electronic Materials; Optical properties; Optical properties and condensed-matter spectroscopy and other interactions of matter with particles and radiation; Photoluminescence; Physical radiation effects, radiation damage; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Processes; Strontium barium niobate; Structure of solids and liquids; crystallography; Surfaces and Interfaces; Thin Films; Ultraviolet, visible, and infrared radiation effects (including laser radiation)
• ISSN: 0947-8396; 1432-0630
• DOI: 10.1007/s00339-009-5468-8

Localized modification of the optical properties of erbium doped strontium barium niobate (SBN) glass has been performed using femtosecond laser irradiation. The samples, with composition SrO–BaO–Nb 2 O 5 –B 2 O 5 and doped with 5%mol of Er 3+ , were fabricated using a melt-quenching method. The samples were irradiated with different number of pulses per spot (1–50 pulses) at two different laser fluences (2.6 and 5.6 J/cm 2 ) by using an fs laser amplifier operating at 800 nm and generating pulses with a duration of 120 fs. Micro-luminescent microscopy, using an Ar + laser as excitation source, has been used to analyze the modifications of the luminescent properties of the sample upon fs laser exposure. The emissions of the Er 3+ : 4 I 11/2 → 4 I 15/2 and 4 I 13/2 → 4 I 15/2 transitions allow appreciating the structural modifications caused by femtosecond laser exposure. The lifetimes of the levels involved in these transitions were measured inside and outside the laser irradiated region. These measurements have been compared with those obtained in bulk glass ceramic sample, which is obtained from the glass precursor by a thermal treatment in order to estimate the optimal conditions to produce nanocrystals in a localized region by ultrafast laser irradiation.