Abstract

Excited state absorption measurements of different garnet crystals are presented and analyzed. The excited state absorption in Cr4+-doped garnets is strongly polarization dependent as a result of the garnet lattice structure and the selection rules for electronic transitions. Stimulated emission is observed between 1300nm and 1750nm for Cr4+:Y3Al5O12 and between 1300nm and 1950nm for Cr4+:Y3Sc0.9Al4.1O12. No excited state absorption is observed in the long wavelength part of the emission. First spectroscopic results of Cr4+:CaY2Mg2Ge3O12 are also presented.

© 1997 Optical Society of America