Heat conductivity of chromium-doped alexandrite single crystals

Abstract

The experimental investigation of the heat conductivity of chromium doped alexandrite single crystals has been reported. The heat conductivity is an important characteristic of the crystal in its use as a laser material. The alexandrite color, the most valuable version of chrysoberyl, is caused by Cr3+ions. The laser alexandrite (Al2BeO 4:Cr3+) crystals are interesting for the unique properties of Cr3+ ions as active laser centers. The samples had the sizes of 3 × 3 × 20 mm. It can be seen that the character of the obtained curves is typical for dielectric single crystals with low structural defect content. Some factors also determine the high heat conductivity of the crystal mix. A high structural quality of the grown single crystals and the prospects of using alexandrite in the fabrication of high-power laser devices have been indicated.