Optical properties of Sm3+ doped Ca3(Nb,Ga)5O12 and Ca3(Li,Nb,Ga)5O12 single crystals

Sm3+ doped partially disordered calcium-niobium-gallium -garnet (CNGG) and calcium-lithium-niobium-gallium -garnet (CLNGG) single crystals were grown by the Czochralski method. Spectroscopic characteristics of Sm:CNGG and Sm:CLNGG single crystals were obtained by high-resolution absorption and emission spectra and emission dynamics measurements. Partial energy levels of Sm3+ doped CNGG and CLNGG were extracted from the measured spectra. The Judd-Ofelt theory has been applied to evaluate the Omega(t)(t=2,4, 6) intensity parameters, radiative transition rates A(r) branching ratios beta, and radiative lifetime tau(r), of the fluorescent Sm3+ (4)G(5/2) level. The emission cross-sections for the (4)G(5/2)-> H-6(J) (J=5/2, 7/2, 9/2) transitions of special interest for visible laser application were obtained by the Fucht-bauer - Ladenburg equation. The interaction between Sm3+ ions is dipole-dipole type and the C-DA, microparameter for both crystals was calculated based on Inokuti-Hirayama model. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.