Fabrication and Properties of Er-Doped Nanocrystalline Phase-Seperated Optical Fibers

The fabrication of Er-doped ZrO2-based nanocrystalline phase-separated optical fiber preforms using the MCVD and solution doping techniques is presented and discussed in details in the paper. Preforms with nearly transparent cores containing Er-doped nanocrystals with dimensions mainly within 20-80 nm have been prepared. Fibers drawn from the preforms exhibit good luminescent properties around 1550 nm suitable for applications in lasers and amplifiers.