Fe:Zn0.6Mn0.4Se laser generation at 5.0 – 5.8-μm in the temperature range of 78 – 300 K

The goal of this study was the investigation of temperature-dependent spectroscopic and laser properties of novel Fe:ZnMnSe crystal with high manganese (Mn) content of 0.4. The fluorescence spectrum at 78 K is broad covering the region from 4000 to 5500 nm. In comparison with a Fe:ZnSe crystal, the fluorescence maximum shift of ~600 nm towards the mid-IR region can be observed. With the increasing temperature, the fluorescence spectrum is getting generally broader together with the maximum shift towards the mid-IR spectral region. The central laser oscillation wavelengths were increasing with temperature from 5450 nm at 78 K up to 5800 nm at 300 K. The output energies were decreasing from 2 mJ at 78 K to 0.1 mJ at 300 K. To our best knowledge, these are the longest oscillation wavelengths generated using a ZnSe-based crystal under Er:YAG laser excitation.