Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

IEE Proceedings - Optoelectronics

Photoluminescence characterisation of Er3+/Yb3+ co-implanted alumina (Al2O3) thin films and sapphire crystals

Constantinos E. Chryssou, C.W. Pitt, David E. Hole, Peter Chandler

Published Dec 1, 1998• 17 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Successful incorporation of both erbium and ytterbium in alumina by ion implantation is reported. Some evidence for indirect pumping of erbium through the transfer of energy from ytterbium has been observed. Both plasma-enhanced CVD deposited alumina thin films and sapphire crystals were employed as substrates. Yb3+ and Er3+ concentrations ranged from 2.4 At% to 8 At% and from 0.4 At% to 0.8 At%, respectively. The samples show strong, broad, room-temperature photoluminescence at λ = 1.53 µm corresponding to the intra-4f transitions between the 4I13/2 (first excited) and the 4I15/2 (ground) state of Er3+. The full width at half maximum of the emission spectrum is as high as 67 nm for the Al2O3 thin films; for the sapphire crystals it is 45 nm. The fluorescence lifetime of the samples has been measured to be as high as 4.2 ms at 50 mW pump power.

DOI
10.1049/ip-opt:19982477

Related papers

Broadband sensitization of 1.53μm Er3+ luminescence in erbium-implanted alumina

Constantinos E. Chryssou, Anthony Joseph Kenyon, T. M. Smeeton +2 more

Experimental evidence of an efficient broadband sensitization mechanism in erbium-implanted alumina is presented. Alumina thin films were deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition using trimethyl-amine alane and nitrous oxide. The as-grown films, together with sapphire crystals, were implanted with erbium. Photoluminescence excitation spectra showed that erbium-implanted sapphire crystals exhibit characteristic Er3+ luminescence at 1.53μm only when pumped resonantly. In contrast, erbium-implanted alumina thin films exhibit 1.53μm luminescence even when pumped at wavelengths outside Er3+ absorption bands. We postulate that the sensitizing species is either small nanoclusters of aluminum or pairs of aluminum ions.

Applied Physics Letters•Nov 29, 2004•9 citations

Enhancement of photoluminescence from Yb and Er co-doped Al2O3 films by an asymmetric metal cavity

Nobuto Managaki, Minoru Fujii, Toshihiro Nakamura +2 more

The effects of Au thin layers on luminescence properties of Er and Yb co-doped Al2O3 films were studied. The 1.54μm emission of Er3+ excited by the energy transfer from Yb3+ is found to be strongly enhanced by placing a Au layer on top of the films. Photoluminescence excitation spectra of the 1.54μm PL of Er3+ and time transients of the 980nm emission of Yb3+ revealed that PL enhancement arises from two different mechanisms. The first one is the enhancement of local electric fields accompanied by the excitation of surface plasmons of rough Au surfaces. The other one is the enhancement of energy transfer rate from Yb3+ to Er3+ caused by the modification of the local photonic mode density at the position of the Yb–Er coupled system.

Applied Physics Letters•Jan 20, 2006•13 citations

Kinetics and quenching mechanisms of photoluminescence in Yb-doped InP

H. J. Łożykowski, A. K. Alshawa, Ian G. Brown

The photoluminescence spectra of Yb-implanted InP samples were studied under pulsed and cw excitations using an Ar+-ion laser (above band-gap excitation) at different temperatures and excitation intensities. The photoluminescence spectrum of the 4f transitions 2F5/2–2F7/2 consists of a sharp peak at 1001 nm and broader peaks in the spectral range between 1002.5 and 1010 nm. Time-resolved spectra were recorded at different temperatures. Using a tunable Ti:sapphire laser (above and below band-gap excitation) the photoluminescence excitation spectra were investigated for different emission lines. Study of the rise and decay time under intrinsic excitation (band to band) show that the rise time is a function of excitation intensity, which reflects an indirect excitation process for Yb3+. The experimental data are explained using a kinetics model of energy transfer from the host lattice to the localized core excited states of rare-earth isoelectronic structured traps. The numerically simulated luminescence rise and decay times show a good general quantitative agreement with experimental data, over a wide range of generation rates. The photoluminescence spectra and decay time were also studied as a function of temperature. A quenching mechanism of ytterbium luminescence involving Yb and Fe ions is proposed. Finally, the electric-field quenching of InP:Yb photoluminescence is investigated.

Journal of Applied Physics•Oct 15, 1994•20 citations

Yb-doped Y–Al–O thin films with a self-organized columnar structure and their anti-Stokes photoluminescence properties

Yuta Nakayama, N. Nakagawa, Y. Matsuo +4 more

We fabricated ytterbium-doped yttrium aluminum oxide (Yb:Y–Al–O) thin films by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering and evaluated their crystallinity and anti-Stokes photoluminescence (PL) properties for optical refrigeration. The Yb:Y–Al–O films that were grown on c-sapphire substrates had better transparency than the films deposited on fused-quartz substrates. The better transparency is considered to be a result of the smaller mismatch between the thermal expansion coefficients of Yb:Y–Al–O and c-sapphire. We found that the thin films on the c-sapphire substrates consist of densely packed sub-micron columnar crystals that are aligned perpendicular to the substrate. In these films, we confirmed the existence of perovskite, garnet, and monoclinic phases despite using a single-phase sputtering target. The excitation wavelength dependence of anti-Stokes PL is used to investigate the energy transfer process between trivalent Yb ions in neighboring columnar crystals. The data indicate that the resonant energy transfer from Yb3+ ions at a specific seven-coordinated site of the monoclinic phase to Yb3+ ions in neighboring columnar crystals is faster than the radiative relaxation at the energy-donor site.

AIP Advances•Feb 1, 2022•1 citation

Optical spectroscopy and energy transfer in amorphous AlN-doped erbium and ytterbium ions for applications in laser cavities

Muhammad Maqbool, Tyler R. Corn

Sputter-deposited thin-film amorphous AlN:Er (1 at. %) emits at 554 and 561 nm as a result of (2)H(11/2)→(4)I(15/2) and (4)S(3/2)→(4)I(15/2) transitions. AlN:Yb (1 at. %) gives a weak emission peak at 966 nm as a result of (2)F(5/2)→(2)F(7/2). The codoping of Er and Yb in AlN results in energy transfer from Er(+3) to Yb(+3) and enhances the Yb(+3) emissions by an order of magnitude. Transfer of electrons occurs from the (4)S(3/2) state of Er(+3) to the (2)F(5/2) state of Yb(+3). The weak emission from Yb(+3), when excited by a 532 nm laser in the absence of Er(+3), confirms that the luminescence enhancement in ytterbium is due to energy transfer and not to direct green light excitation by the erbium emission. A possibility of population inversion and a four-level laser cavity formation exists in the Er(+3)-Yb(+3) system.

Optics Letters•Sep 14, 2010•15 citations

Erbium doped yttrium oxide thin films grown by chemical vapour deposition for quantum technologies

Anna Blin, Alexander Kolar, Kamen, Andrew +8 more

The obtention of quantum-grade rare-earth doped oxide thin films that can be integrated with optical cavities and microwave resonators is of great interest for the development of scalable quantum devices. Among the different growth methods, Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) offers high flexibility and has demonstrated the ability to produce oxide films hosting rare-earth ions with narrow linewidths. However, growing epitaxial films directly on silicon is challenging by CVD due to a native amorphous oxide layer formation at the interface. In this manuscript, we investigate the CVD growth of erbium-doped yttrium oxide (Er:Y2O3) thin films on different substrates, including silicon, sapphire, quartz or yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ). Alternatively, growth was also attempted on an epitaxial Y2O3 template layer on Si (111) prepared by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) in order to circumvent the issue of the amorphous interlayer. We found that the substrate impacts the film morphology and the crystalline orientations, with different textures observed for the CVD film on the MBE-oxide/Si template (111) and epitaxial growth on YSZ (001). In terms of optical properties, Er3+ ions exhibit visible and IR emission features that are comparable for all samples, indicating a high-quality local crystalline environment regardless of the substrate. Our approach opens interesting prospects to integrate such films into scalable devices for optical quantum technologies.

arXiv:2411.10196•Nov 15, 2024•1 citation
Successful incorporation of both erbium and ytterbium in alumina by ion implantation is reported. Some evidence for indirect pumping of erbium through the transfer of energy from ytterbium has been observed. Both plasma-enhanced CVD deposited alumina thin films and sapphire crystals were employed as substrates. Yb3+ and Er3+ concentrations ranged from 2.4 At% to 8 At% and from 0.4 At% to 0.8 At%, respectively. The samples show strong, broad, room-temperature photoluminescence at λ = 1.53 µm corresponding to the intra-4f transitions between the 4I13/2 (first excited) and the 4I15/2 (ground) state of Er3+. The full width at half maximum of the emission spectrum is as high as 67 nm for the Al2O3 thin films; for the sapphire crystals it is 45 nm. The fluorescence lifetime of the samples has been measured to be as high as 4.2 ms at 50 mW pump power.
Experimental evidence of an efficient broadband sensitization mechanism in erbium-implanted alumina is presented. Alumina thin films were deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition using trimethyl-amine alane and nitrous oxide. The as-grown films, together with sapphire crystals, were implanted with erbium. Photoluminescence excitation spectra showed that erbium-implanted sapphire crystals exhibit characteristic Er3+ luminescence at 1.53μm only when pumped resonantly. In contrast, erbium-implanted alumina thin films exhibit 1.53μm luminescence even when pumped at wavelengths outside Er3+ absorption bands. We postulate that the sensitizing species is either small nanoclusters of aluminum or pairs of aluminum ions.
The effects of Au thin layers on luminescence properties of Er and Yb co-doped Al2O3 films were studied. The 1.54μm emission of Er3+ excited by the energy transfer from Yb3+ is found to be strongly enhanced by placing a Au layer on top of the films. Photoluminescence excitation spectra of the 1.54μm PL of Er3+ and time transients of the 980nm emission of Yb3+ revealed that PL enhancement arises from two different mechanisms. The first one is the enhancement of local electric fields accompanied by the excitation of surface plasmons of rough Au surfaces. The other one is the enhancement of energy transfer rate from Yb3+ to Er3+ caused by the modification of the local photonic mode density at the position of the Yb–Er coupled system.
The photoluminescence spectra of Yb-implanted InP samples were studied under pulsed and cw excitations using an Ar+-ion laser (above band-gap excitation) at different temperatures and excitation intensities. The photoluminescence spectrum of the 4f transitions 2F5/2–2F7/2 consists of a sharp peak at 1001 nm and broader peaks in the spectral range between 1002.5 and 1010 nm. Time-resolved spectra were recorded at different temperatures. Using a tunable Ti:sapphire laser (above and below band-gap excitation) the photoluminescence excitation spectra were investigated for different emission lines. Study of the rise and decay time under intrinsic excitation (band to band) show that the rise time is a function of excitation intensity, which reflects an indirect excitation process for Yb3+. The experimental data are explained using a kinetics model of energy transfer from the host lattice to the localized core excited states of rare-earth isoelectronic structured traps. The numerically simulated luminescence rise and decay times show a good general quantitative agreement with experimental data, over a wide range of generation rates. The photoluminescence spectra and decay time were also studied as a function of temperature. A quenching mechanism of ytterbium luminescence involving Yb and Fe ions is proposed. Finally, the electric-field quenching of InP:Yb photoluminescence is investigated.
We fabricated ytterbium-doped yttrium aluminum oxide (Yb:Y–Al–O) thin films by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering and evaluated their crystallinity and anti-Stokes photoluminescence (PL) properties for optical refrigeration. The Yb:Y–Al–O films that were grown on c-sapphire substrates had better transparency than the films deposited on fused-quartz substrates. The better transparency is considered to be a result of the smaller mismatch between the thermal expansion coefficients of Yb:Y–Al–O and c-sapphire. We found that the thin films on the c-sapphire substrates consist of densely packed sub-micron columnar crystals that are aligned perpendicular to the substrate. In these films, we confirmed the existence of perovskite, garnet, and monoclinic phases despite using a single-phase sputtering target. The excitation wavelength dependence of anti-Stokes PL is used to investigate the energy transfer process between trivalent Yb ions in neighboring columnar crystals. The data indicate that the resonant energy transfer from Yb3+ ions at a specific seven-coordinated site of the monoclinic phase to Yb3+ ions in neighboring columnar crystals is faster than the radiative relaxation at the energy-donor site.
Sputter-deposited thin-film amorphous AlN:Er (1 at. %) emits at 554 and 561 nm as a result of (2)H(11/2)→(4)I(15/2) and (4)S(3/2)→(4)I(15/2) transitions. AlN:Yb (1 at. %) gives a weak emission peak at 966 nm as a result of (2)F(5/2)→(2)F(7/2). The codoping of Er and Yb in AlN results in energy transfer from Er(+3) to Yb(+3) and enhances the Yb(+3) emissions by an order of magnitude. Transfer of electrons occurs from the (4)S(3/2) state of Er(+3) to the (2)F(5/2) state of Yb(+3). The weak emission from Yb(+3), when excited by a 532 nm laser in the absence of Er(+3), confirms that the luminescence enhancement in ytterbium is due to energy transfer and not to direct green light excitation by the erbium emission. A possibility of population inversion and a four-level laser cavity formation exists in the Er(+3)-Yb(+3) system.
The obtention of quantum-grade rare-earth doped oxide thin films that can be integrated with optical cavities and microwave resonators is of great interest for the development of scalable quantum devices. Among the different growth methods, Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) offers high flexibility and has demonstrated the ability to produce oxide films hosting rare-earth ions with narrow linewidths. However, growing epitaxial films directly on silicon is challenging by CVD due to a native amorphous oxide layer formation at the interface. In this manuscript, we investigate the CVD growth of erbium-doped yttrium oxide (Er:Y2O3) thin films on different substrates, including silicon, sapphire, quartz or yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ). Alternatively, growth was also attempted on an epitaxial Y2O3 template layer on Si (111) prepared by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) in order to circumvent the issue of the amorphous interlayer. We found that the substrate impacts the film morphology and the crystalline orientations, with different textures observed for the CVD film on the MBE-oxide/Si template (111) and epitaxial growth on YSZ (001). In terms of optical properties, Er3+ ions exhibit visible and IR emission features that are comparable for all samples, indicating a high-quality local crystalline environment regardless of the substrate. Our approach opens interesting prospects to integrate such films into scalable devices for optical quantum technologies.