Growth and Properties of Yb³⁺-Doped Strontium Tungstate Crystal

Ytterbium doped crystal is a kind of excellent solid-state laser gain medium, which has been widely used. In this work, Yb∶SrWO₄ crystals with different doping concentrations were grown by Czochralski method. The crystal structure was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, and the cell parameters were obtained by analyzing the powder diffraction data. The actual doping concentration of Yb³⁺ in Yb∶SrWO₄ crystal was investigated by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry, whose results show that there is an upper doping limit for the Yb³⁺ ions and the main charge compensation mechanism in the crystal changes with the increase of Yb³⁺ doping concentration. The thermal properties of Yb∶SrWO₄ crystal with different doping concentrations were measured, whose results show that the specific heat, thermal expansion coefficient and thermal conductivity changed slightly compared with the undoped SrWO₄ crystals, exhibiting excellent thermal properties. These results indicate that Yb∶SrWO₄ crystal is a potential solid laser gain medium.