Optical and Thermal Properties of a New Nd-doped Phosphate Laser Glass

In this paper, we report the optical and thermal properties of a new Nd-doped phosphate laser glass. Glass samples with 0.5-3.7 wt% Nd-doping concentrations were prepared, annealed, cut and polished for different measurements, including glass density and refractive index, absorption spectra and emission cross section, as well as laser properties. A Mach-Zehnder interferometer was used to measure the temperature coefficient of refractive index (dn/dT) and optical path length (dS/dT) in the temperature range of 30-100 degrees C. Moreover, by increasing the glass temperature up to 500 degrees C, the thermal expansion of this new glass was also measured. On the basis of these optical, thermal and thermo-optic parameters, we calculated and analyzed some of glass parameters, such as the electronic polarizability of oxygen ions, the optical basicity of this phosphate-based glass, and especially discussed their thermal shock resistance properties. It is suggested that this new Nd-doped phosphate laser glass is an excellent candidate for high energy and high repetition rate laser applications