Picosecond excite-and-probe absorption measurement of the intra-2E(g)E(3/2)-state vibrational relaxation time in Ti(3+):Al2O3

The Ti(3+)-doped Al2O3 has been recently demonstrated to be a tunable solid-state laser system with Ti(3+) as the laser-active ion. In this paper, the kinetics of vibrational transitions in the 2E(g)E(3/2) electronic state of Ti(3+):Al2O3a (crucial for characterizing new host materials for the Ti ion) was investigated. A 527-nm 5-ps pulse was used to excite a band of higher vibrational levels of the 2E(g)E(3/2) state, and the subsequent growth of population in the zero vibrational level and lower vibrational levels was monitored by a 3.9-micron picosecond probe pulse. The time evolution curve in the excited 2E(g)E(3/2) state at room temperature was found to be characterized by a sharp rise followed by a long decay, the long lifetime decay reflecting the depopulation of the zero and the lower vibrational levels of the 2E(g)E(3/2) state via radiative transitions. An upper limit of 3.5 ps was estimated for intra-2E(g)E(3/2)-state vibrational relaxation time.