Compositional dependence of Stark splitting and spectroscopic properties in Yb3+-doped lead silicate glasses

In this work, we explore the effect of ionic field strength of modifiers (Li + , Na + , K + , Mg 2+ , Ca 2+ , Sr 2+ and Ba 2+ ) on room-temperature Stark splitting and spectroscopic properties of Yb 3+ ions in lead silicate glasses. Our measurements show that the ‘crystal-field’ parameter and asymmetry degree of Yb 3+ ion ligands are increased as a function of modifier field strength due to the corresponding higher electronegativity and bonding energy. Higher field strengths produce greater absorption σ a and emission σ e cross-sections, effective emission linewidth Δ λ eff and spontaneous emission probability A rad of Yb 3+ ions. We report a 57% enhancement on σ a , σ e and Δ λ eff by doubling the field strength of the modifier cations, implying Yb 3+ ion doped lead silicate glass with high field strength modifiers (Li + , Mg 2+ and Ca 2+ ) may be a promising candidate for efficient laser emission operation.