NIR luminescence from Er3+/Yb3+, Tm3+/Yb3+, Er3+/Tm3+ and Nd3+ ions-doped zincborotellurite glasses for optical amplification

In this paper, we report the near-infrared luminescence from the Er3+/Yb3+, Tm3+/Yb3+, Er3+/Tm3+ and Nd3+ ions-doped TeO2–ZnO–B2O3–Li2O–Na2O glasses for optical amplification. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) profiles of the host glass matrix have been carried out. From the DSC thermogram, glass transition (Tg), crystallization (Tc) and melting (Tm) temperatures have been evaluated. The near-infrared spectra of Er3+/Yb3+, Tm3+/Yb3+, Er3+/Tm3+ and Nd3+ ions-doped glasses have shown full-width at half-maxima (FWHM) around 58, 127, 87 and 35 nm, respectively. These glasses with better thermal stability and broad near-infrared emissions should have potential applications in broadly tunable laser sources and broadband optical amplification at low-loss telecommunication windows.