Abstract
Silica glass has not been fully characterized as a host material for glass lasers. To evaluate the intrinsic fluorescent characteristics of Nd-doped SiO2 glass, a plasma torch CVD system was specially designed for the preparation of clear high purity glasses. Both of the observed fluorescences of Nd3+ (4F3/2–4I9/2 and 4F3/2–4I11/2) consist of a fast (τ≃0.35 µs) and a slow (τ≃450 µs) decay component. The spectral features and intensity of the former remarkably depend on Nd concentration and preparation conditions, while those of the latter are similar in every sample and its fluorescence peak positions distinctly shift to a wavelength longer than those observed in ordinary multicomponent glasses.