Eilers H, Hömmerich U, Jacobsen S M, Yen W M, Kokta M
Opt Lett. 1993 Nov 15;18(22):1928-30. doi: 10.1364/ol.18.001928.
We report on the near-infrared absorption, emission, and lifetime data of Cr(4+):Lu(3)Al(5)O(12) (Cr:LAG) and compare the results with the known laser material Cr(4+)-doped Y(3)Al(5)O(12) (Cr:YAG). Lu(3)Al(5)O(12) has a smaller unit cell than Y(3)Al(5)O(12), and this feature is reflected in its spectroscopic properties. The low-temperature luminescence spectrum is shifted by 85 cm(-1) to higher energy compared with Cr:YAG. The luminescence lifetime of Cr:LAG at 10 K is 28.7 micros (Cr:YAG, 30.6 micros) and at 300 K is 4.3 micros (Cr:YAG, 3.5 micros). From these lifetimes we postulate that the quantum efficiency in Cr:LAG is higher than in Cr:YAG. We discuss the potential of Cr:LAG as a tunable near-infrared laser.
