Fiber optic thermometer using Cr-doped GdAlO3 broadband emission decay

Luminescence decay temperature measurements are performed from 800 to 1200 degrees C using a Cr-doped GdAlO3 (Cr:GdAlO3) sensor tip on a YAG single crystal fiber. As a thermographic phosphor, Cr:GdAlO3 combines the intense luminescence of transition metal dopants with the high temperature long decay times usually exhibited only by rare earth dopants. The proposed mechanism is emission by the Cr3+ dopant via the spin-allowed T-4(2) -> (4)A(2) transition supported by a reservoir state in E-2 which populates T-4(2) (E-2 -> T-4(2) 4 2) through thermal equilibration. The relative energy levels and transition probabilities associated with the strong crystal field at the Al3+ site in the perovskite structure of GdAlO3 are favorable for suppressing thermal quenching of luminescence. Results from a single-fiber configuration sensor, based on a YAG fiber for its low background luminescence, are presented. Using a decay curve fitting procedure that accounts for background fluorescence, accuracies of better than +/- 5 degrees C are demonstrated.