Abstract

Erbium-doped fluoride fibers are promising candidates for the construction of compact and efficient all-solid-state laser sources. The continuously rising interest in the 3 μm erbium laser is evoked by applications in medicine, especially in surgery. For these applications a powerful fiber-laser source would be most suitable. The 3 μm erbium ZBLAN fiber, however, exhibits a slope efficiency below 10 % and saturates at a low output power in the range of 10 mW [1-3].

© 1995 Optical Society of America