Design of praseodymium-doped optical waveguides

A theoretical investigation of the feasibility of planar channel waveguide amplifiers and Fabry-Perot lasers, made of praseodymium (Pr3+)-doped chalcogenide glass, is performed by means of a homemade computer code. The buried channel waveguide amplifier, having both the core and the substrate doped with a Pr3+ concentration N=3000 ppm, shows a gain close to G=7 dB for an input signal power of P-s=1 muW at the wavelength lambda(s) = 1310 nm and a pump power of P-p=200 mW at the wavelength lambda(p)=1020 nm. The Fabry-Perot laser employing this buried channel waveguide, terminated by an input mirror having reflectivity R-1=98% and an output mirror having reflectivity R-2=41 %, exhibits a threshold pump power P-th=16 mW and a slope efficiency S=8%. (C) 2003 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.