Crystal growth, spectral properties and Judd–Ofelt analysis of Pr: CaF2-YF3 * *Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 61805177, 61861136007, and 61621001).

Abstract

The 0.6 at.% Pr3+-doped CaF2-YF3 crystal was successfully grown by the temperature gradient technique (TGT). X-ray diffraction analysis showed that the grown crystal still had cubic structure. The absorption spectrum, emission spectrum, Judd–Ofelt analysis and fluorescence decay curve at room temperature were discussed. The fluorescence lifetime of Pr: CaF2-YF3 crystal was 45.46 μs, and the σ em ⋅ τ of 3P0 → 3H6 and 3P0 → 3F2 transitions were calculated to be 80.92 × 10−20 cm2 ⋅ μs and 388.7 × 10−20 cm2 ⋅ μs, respectively. The FWHMs are 20.1 nm and 6.8 nm, which are higher than those of Pr: LiYF4, Pr: LiLuF4, Pr: LiGdF4 and Pr: BaY2F8 crystals. The results show that the Pr: CaF2-YF3 crystal is expected to achieve 605 nm orange light and 642 nm red light laser operation.