Rare-earth-doped chalcogenide glasses for mid-IR gas sensor applications

Abstract

Luminescence properties of Pr3+ and Dy3+ doped GaGeSbSe(S) vitreous systems have been studied. The synthesis process to obtain homogeneous glasses has been determined and fibers have been successfully drawn from the produced preforms and characterized. Fibers show a mid-IR luminescence matching with the CO2 absorption band at 4.3 μm and can be used in an environmental monitoring sensor for the CO2 underground storage. The luminescence and glasses properties have been investigated on bulk samples and fibers in order to improve the efficiency of an optical CO2 sensor prototype operating from high to low concentration, down to the ppm level.