Thermal lens and Z-scan measurements: Thermal and optical properties of laser glasses – A review

In this paper, the application of thermal lens and Z-scan techniques to the study of the thermo-optical and spectroscopic properties of solid-state laser glasses is described. The theoretical basis for quantitative measurements of thermal diffusivity and conductivity, temperature coefficient of the optical path length change, heat efficiency, fluorescence quantum efficiency, losses mechanisms (Auger upconversion and concentration quenching) and the line shape of the nonlinear refractive index are presented and discussed. The electronic contribution to the nonlinearity was investigated using the Z-scan technique in the time-resolved mode. The measurements were performed spectroscopically, allowing the determination of the line shapes of real and imaginary parts of the nonlinear refractive index, n2, in resonance with laser transitions. The results were interpreted by considering resonant and nonresonant contribution to n2. The magnitude of electronic and thermal contributions to the refractive index changes in solid-state laser glasses were also compared, and the thermal properties as a function of the temperature in the range of 20 up to 600 K are presented.