1.8–2.7 μm emission from As-S-Se chalcogenide glasses containing ZnSe: Cr2+ particles

Mid-infrared (MIR) light sources are indispensable in modern photonic society. In this work, the composites of the As-S-Se chalcogenide glasses containing MIR-emitting ZnSe: Cr2+ submicron-particles are fabricated by two methods, melt-quenching and hot-pressing. The MIR refractive index, transmittance and photoluminescence properties are investigated and compared in the composites prepared by the two methods. Benefiting from the wide glass forming region of the As-S-Se system, it is possible, by tuning the glass composition, to find a glass (e.g., As40S57Se3) with the refractive index well matching that of the ZnSe: Cr2+ crystal. The composites prepared by the melt-quenching method have higher MIR transmittance, but the MIR emission can only be observed in the samples prepared by the hot-pressing technique. The corresponding reasons are discussed based on microstructural analyses. The results reported in this article could provide helpful theoretical and experimental information for making novel broadband MIR-emitting sources based on chalcogenide glasses.