Growth, micro-structuring, spectroscopy, and optical gain in as-deposited Al2O3:ErAl_2O_3:Er waveguides

Deposition and micro-structuring of $Al_2O_3:Er$ layers with low background losses (0.11 dB/cm) and lifetimes up to 7 ms have been optimized for active devices. Net gain of 0.7 dB/cm at 1533 nm has been measured.\ud \u

Energy Migration Governs Upconversion Losses in Er³⁺-doped Integrated Amplifiers

At high Er3+ doping, electric dipole-dipole interactions between neighboring ions such as energy migration and energy-transfer upconversion (ETU) take place, thereby reducing the population inversion and negatively affecting the gain performance of the amplifier. These effects are investigated by lifetime and gain measurements respectively, in Al2O3:Er3+ waveguides and analyzed the results in the frame of the microscopic model developed by Zubenko et al