Broadband, mid-infrared emission from Pi3+ doped GeAsGaSe chalcogenide fiber, optically clad

We present a study of mid-infrared photoluminescence in the wavelength range 3.5-5.5 mu m emitted from Pr3+: GeAsGaSe core/GeAsGaSe cladding chalcogenide fiber. The Pr3+ doped fiber optic preform is fabricated using extrusion and is successfully drawn to low optical loss, step-index fiber. Broadband mid-infrared photoluminescence is observed from the fiber, both under 1.55 mu m or 1.94 mu m wavelength excitation. Absorption, and emission, spectra of bulk glass and fiber are presented. Luminescent lifetimes are measured for the fiber and the Judd-Ofelt parameters are calculated. The radiative transition rates calculated from Judd-Ofelt theory are compared with experimental lifetimes. The observed strong broadband emission suggests that this type of fiber is a good candidate for further development to realize both fiber lasers and amplified spontaneous emission fiber sources in the mid-infrared region. (C) 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).