Composition dependence of Nd3+ homogeneous linewidths in glasses

Abstract

Optical homogeneous linewidths of the ⁴F_3/2–⁴I_9/2 transition of Nd³⁺ in oxide and fluoride based glasses are measured for host composition ranging from simple binary to multicomponent glasses. Homogeneous linewidths at 300 K exhibit a broad range of values, varying by approximately a factor of 4. The ratio of homogenous to inhomogeneous linewidth also varies over a broad range, from 0.16 for a sodium barium borate glass to 1.86 for a rubidium phosphate glass. In addition, the homogeneous linewidth is inversely dependent to the ∼2.5 power of the velocity of sound from host to host. This dependence is not predicted by existing theories of the line broadening process.