Abstract
Broad-band vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) fluorescence on the 4fn−1 5d → 4fn transitions has been observed in a number of rare-earth activated fluoride hosts.1 Ultraviolet (UV) laser oscillation on the 5d → 4f transition in Ce has been observed in a number of hosts,2,3 and recently VUV laser oscillation at 172 nm has been reported4 in LaF3:Nd3+ pumped by a pulsed-discharge molecular F2 laser. A simplified energy level diagram illustrating the transitions involved, together with the F2 laser induced VUV fluorescence spectrum5 for a 1% doped sample of LaF3:Nd3+ is shown in Fig. 1. F2 laser pumped rare-earth–doped fluorides, since they operate through linear processes, offer the prospect of a convenient source of intense tunable VUV laser radiation, with applications in photochemistry and photolithography.
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