In-Band Pumped Thulium-Doped Tellurite Glass Microsphere Laser

Microresonator-based lasers in the two-micron range are interesting for extensive applications. Tm3+ ions provide high gain; therefore, they are promising for laser generation in the two-micron range in various matrices. We developed a simple theoretical model to describe Tm-doped glass microlasers generating in the 1.9–2 μm range with in-band pump at 1.55 μm. Using this model, we calculated threshold pump powers, laser generation wavelengths and slope efficiencies for different parameters of Tm-doped tellurite glass microspheres such as diameters, Q-factors, and thulium ion concentration. In addition, we produced a 320-μm tellurite glass microsphere doped with thulium ions with a concentration of 5·1019 cm−3. We attained lasing at 1.9 μm experimentally in the produced sample with a Q-factor of 106 pumped by a C-band narrow line laser.