Abstract

The most widely used host material for optically active rare-earth ions is yttrium-aluminum garnet (YAG). A typical active material utilized in the thin-disk laser set-up is Yb-doped YAG [1]. Currently, a strong trend to thinner disks is observed to obtain a better heat dissipation. Furthermore, rare-earth-doped waveguiding films of YAG have been demonstrated [2]. Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) is proved to be a suitable technique for the fabrication of high-quality crystalline films. In this contribution, we report on the 2-dimensional growth of Yb(0...20%):YAG and YbAG PLD- films on YAG, which was monitored by RHEED measurements in situ during growth. The properties of the films after growth were investigated by means of XRD, AFM and optical spectroscopy. Films highly textured in the orientation defined by the substrate were obtained.

© 2007 IEEE