Author:

Keywords:

Pr3+, rare earths, lanthanides, MCD, Judd-Ofelt theory, optical-transitions, praseodymium, magnetic circular dichroism, fluoride glasses, fluorozirconate glasses, Science & Technology, Physical Sciences, Technology, Chemistry, Physical, Materials Science, Multidisciplinary, Metallurgy & Metallurgical Engineering, Chemistry, Materials Science, OPTICAL-TRANSITIONS, IONS, 0204 Condensed Matter Physics, 0912 Materials Engineering, 0914 Resources Engineering and Extractive Metallurgy, Materials, 4016 Materials engineering, 5104 Condensed matter physics

Abstract:

Optical absorption and magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) spectra of 1% Pr3+ doped ZBLAN fluorozirconate glass have been recorded at several temperatures between 4.2 K and room-temperature. The dipole strengths of the 4f-4f transitions are parametrized in terms of three phenomenological Judd-Ofelt intensity parameters Omega(lambda) (lambda = 2, 4 and 6). The method of moments was used to extract the Faraday parameters from the MCD spectra. While the room-temperature MCD spectra are dominated by A-terms (which have the shape of the first derivative of an absorption curve), C-terms become more important at lower temperature. The temperature dependence of the 3P0 < /-- 3H4 transition is a typical example. The temperature dependent change of the MCD spectrum can be explained by the differential thermal population of the Zeeman levels from which absorption of left and right circularly polarized light takes place.