Optical spectroscopy of Ho³⁺,Pr³⁺ co-doped YScO₃ crystal

YScO3 single crystal co-doped with Ho3+ and Pr3+ ions has been successfully grown by the Czochralaki method. The absorption spectrum, fluorescence spectrum and fluorescence decay curve were measured at room temperature. The absorption cross section of Ho,Pr:YScO3 at 649 nm and 1130 nm was calculated to be 0.93 x 10(-20) cm(2) and 0.32 x 10(-20) cm(2), respectively. Judd-Ofelt (J-O) theory was performed to evaluate the spontaneous emission probabilities and the radiative lifetimes. Ho,Pr:YScO3 exhibited strong emission at 2040 nm and 2890 nm with a emission cross section of 0.80 x 10(-21) cm(2) and 1.22 x 10(-20) cm(2), respectively. The fluorescence lifetime of the Ho3+:I-5(6) and I-5(7) levels were calculated to be 0.31 ms and 5.89 ms, respectively. All the results indicate that the Ho,Pr:YScO3 crystal could be a potential laser material for 2.9 mu m laser operation.