Abstract
New glass compositions containing high concentrations of Tb3+ ions were developed aiming at the production of magneto-optical (MO) fibers. This work reports on the structural and MO properties of a new glass composition based on (100 − x)(41GeO2–25B2O3–4Al2O3–10Na2O–20BaO) − xTb4O7. Morphological analysis (HR-TEM) of the sample with the highest concentration of Tb3+ ions confirmed the homogeneous distribution of Tb3+ ions and the absence of nanoclusters. All the samples presented excellent thermal stability against crystallization (ΔT > 100 °C). An optical fiber was manufactured by a fiber drawing process. The UV–Vis spectra of the glasses showed Tb3+ electronic transitions and optical windows varying from 0.4 to 1.6 μm. The magneto-optical properties and the paramagnetic behaviors of the glasses were investigated using Faraday rotation experiments. The Verdet constant (VB) values were calculated at 500, 650, 880, 1050, 1330, and 1550 nm. The maximum VB values obtained at 650 and 1550 nm for the glass with x = 18 mol% were -128 and − 17.6 rad T−1 m−1, respectively. The VB values at 500 and 1550 nm for the optical fiber containing 8 mol% of Tb4O7 were − 110.2 and − 9.5 rad T−1 m−1, respectively, while the optical loss at around 880 nm was 6.4 dB m−1.
Highlights
New glass compositions containing high concentrations of Tb3+ ions were developed aiming at the production of magneto-optical (MO) fibers
The same color change has been reported for calcium aluminosilicate and borogermanate glasses containing high Tb3+ contents, with the effects being attributed to the Tb3+–Tb4+ redox process and the conditions of melting[1,22]
This work reports the synthesis of transparent Tb3+-borogermanate MO glasses using the traditional meltquenching method
Summary
New glass compositions containing high concentrations of Tb3+ ions were developed aiming at the production of magneto-optical (MO) fibers. The VB values at 500 and 1550 nm for the optical fiber containing 8 mol% of Tb4O7 were − 110.2 and − 9.5 rad T −1 m −1, respectively, while the optical loss at around 880 nm was 6.4 dB m −1. Magneto-optical (MO) materials based on the Faraday effect have been increasingly studied for use in new technologies[1,2]. Among the MO materials, especially attractive are paramagnetic glasses containing high concentrations of T b3+ ions and with large V B values in UV–Vis-NIR r egions[12,13]. The development of MO glass compositions able to support high RE ions contents and with high thermal stability represents an important step towards achieving successful fiber drawing processes without crystallization. Studies have reported the production of MO fibers based on P r3+-doped aluminosilicate[14], Eu-doped silica glass15, Gd2O3 NPs-doped aluminosilicate g lass[16], and Tb3+-doped silicate g lasses[17]
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