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In this work, the thermal lens (TL) technique is used to determine the fluorescence quantum efficiency (η) of Yb3+-doped phosphate glasses. The role of nonradiative processes such as energy migration among Yb ions and the interaction with OH- radicals are presented and discussed. Two sets of samples with the same Yb concentrations were prepared, one at ambient conditions (set A) and the other in N2 atmosphere (set N). The TL technique was shown to be very sensitive to the amount of OH radicals. Moreover, the η values obtained from the TL method are in good agreement with the calculate ones (based on lifetime measurements). The results indicate that TL can be a valuable technique to evaluate the quantum efficiency and nonradiative rates in ion-doped materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]