Enhancement of spectroscopic properties of Er3+ doped TeO2-Nb2O5-ZnO glassy systems for optical amplifiers at 1.53 µm

Tellurite-based glasses doped with varying amounts of Er3+ ions were elaborated by the melt quenching process. Based on Judd-Ofelt model, the local structures around erbium ions were studied and various optical parameters such as quantum efficiency (η), radiative lifetime (τR) and quality factor (χ) were determined. Following the addition of Er2O3, the results showed an enhancement in luminescence intensity at 1530 nm as well as a significant improvement of the effective bandwidth (108.8 nm), the emission cross section (9.1 ×10−21 cm2)and the quantum efficiency (91.8%) ascribed to the emission band at 1530 nm. The impact of adding a large amount of Er2O3 on the experimental lifetime of the 4I13/2 level was analysed using the Inokuti-Hirayama model. The obtained results were correlated with the concentrations of hydroxyl groups to investigate the luminescence quenching process in the tellurite glasses and to explain the decrease in some spectroscopic parameters. Accordingly, the results indicate that TeO2-based glass which contains optimum erbium concentrations may be a suitable material in the design of wide-band optical fiber amplifiers (EDFAs).