Shawn Penson

Epitaxial Nd-doped α-(Al 1−x Ga x ) 2 O 3 films on sapphire for solid-state waveguide lasers

Single-crystal aluminum-gallium oxide films have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy in the corundum phase. Films of the (Al(1-x)Ga(x))(2)O(3) alloys doped with neodymium have favorable properties for solid-state waveguide lasers, including a high-thermal-conductivity sapphire substrate and a dominant emission peak in the 1090-1096 nm wavelength range. The peak position is linearly correlated to the unit cell volume, which is dependent on film composition and stress. Varying the Ga-Al alloy composition during growth will enable the fabrication of graded-index layers for tunable lasing wavelengths and low scattering losses at the interfaces.

Epitaxial neodymium-doped sapphire films, a new active medium for waveguide lasers.

Epitaxial films of neodymium-doped sapphire have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy on R-, A-, and M-plane sapphire substrates. The emission spectrum features sharp lines consistent with single-site doping of the Nd(3+) ion into the host crystal. This material is believed to be a nonequilibrium phase, inaccessible by conventional high-temperature growth methods. Neodymium-doped sapphire has a promising lasing line at 1096 nm with an emission cross section of 11.9x10(-19) cm(2), similar to the 1064 nm line of Nd:YVO(4).

Optical wave propagation in epitaxial Nd:Y2O3 planar waveguides.

Optical wave propagation in neodymium-doped yttrium oxide (Nd:Y(2)O(3)) films grown on R-plane sapphire substrates by molecular beam epitaxy has been studied by the prism coupler method. The measurements yield propagation loss data, the refractive index, and the dispersion relation. The refractive index of the Nd:Y(2)O(3) at 632.8 nm is found to be 1.909, and the lowest propagation loss measured is 0.9 +/- 0.2 cm(-1) at 1046 nm with a polymethyl methacrylate top cladding layer on a film with 6 nm root mean square surface roughness. The loss measurements suggest that the majority loss of this planar waveguide sample is scatter from surface roughness that can be described by the model of Payne and Lacey [Opt. Quantum Electron. 26, 977 (1994)].

Epitaxial Nd:Sapphire Films - Candidate Solid State Laser Material for 1096nm Emission

Nd:Sapphire films grown by molecular beam epitaxy produce sharp emission lines due to identical-site doping not observed in bulk sapphire crystals. The 1096 nm line is a lasing candidate with an Nd:YVO4-like emission cross section.