Mid Sweden University

The recent development of Yb-doped silica fibers that can be optically cooled via anti-Stokes fluorescence is fostering a new generation of fiber lasers and amplifiers that can run without external coolers. Thanks to their greatly reduced thermal loads, these devices are expected to exhibit superior properties in terms of improved power and frequency stability, and reduced thermal lensing and transverse-mode instability. This paper presents a detailed comparative study of the measured cooling properties of eight fibers with record-high Yb quenching concentrations in aluminosilicate and aluminophosphosilicate compositions. Analysis of the experimental cooling data provides valuable quantitative information about the quenching rate and background absorption of each fiber, the two parameters (besides Yb concentration) that influence the cooling performance most strongly. This study shows that aluminophosphosilicates perform better than aluminosilicates, and that very high Yb concentrations (up to 6 wt.%) can be achieved with very low quenching when the glass is co-doped with sufficient phosphorus (∼12 wt.%) and aluminum (1-7 wt.%). With the best aluminophosphosilicate composition, it is now possible to cool a fiber with a small core by as much as -250 mK at atmospheric pressure. Cooling is no longer limited by quenching, but by background absorption. Future work will focus on identifying the impurities in precursor materials responsible for this background absorption and reducing their content to lower this loss from its current 15-dB/km record value. 

Additive manufacturing is rapidly growing, where selective laser sintering technology dominates for industrial use. In the case of polymer selective laser sintering, polyamide is the standard material. However, polyamide is an electrical insulator, and for specific applications, it would be desirable to be able to manufacture polymer-based electrically conductive parts. Electromagnetic Compatibility is one of the most significant targeted applications, where the introduction of electric vehicles raises new electromagnetic compatibility demands. The goal is, therefore, to develop an electrically conductive composite material for selective laser sintering using graphene as the additive. Composites are prepared by mixing polyamide, graphene, and additives with varying graphene/polyamide ratios. The aim of this investigation is the laser-assisted processing of the resulting graphene/polyamide composites with various parameters to sinter the material, forming a solid conductive structure. The structure is characterized using SEM and resistance measurements. Results show sheet resistance values of about 700Ω/sq after laser-assisted processing with good powder flowability. 

For applications of laser cooling, silica optical fibers provide beneficial mechanical, chemical, and thermal fortitude, and they also offer compatibility with current commercial fiber laser systems. This paper explores the influence of hydroxyl concentrations on heat generation in ytterbium-doped aluminosilicate fibers produced using modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD).

To unlock the full potential of laser-cooled silica optical fibers, a better understanding of the internal mechanisms of heat generation is required. This work explores ytterbium-doped aluminosilicate fibers produced via industry-standard modified chemical vapor deposition (MCVD) techniques with varied levels of divalent ytterbium to determine their effect on anti-Stokes fluorescence thermal performance. The inclusion of Yb2+ is shown to have a significant negative impact on cooling potential. Yb2+ ions are shown to correlate with heat generation by two distinct mechanisms, absorption and quenching of active Yb3+ ions. This excess heating represents a reduction in quantum efficiency that is detrimental to Yb-doped fiber lasers and amplifiers beyond the laser-cooling application. 

Lithium-ion batteries are widely used today due to their high energy density, long life cycles, and low self-discharge rates. It commonly uses graphite as an anode material with a high theoretical capacity of 372mAh/g. At the same time, several research groups explore ways to further increase the energy storage capacity of lithium-ion batteries by, for example, adding silicon to the graphite anode material. Silicon is naturally abundant and inexpensive, with low environmental impact and a significantly higher theoretical specific capacity of ~4200mAh/g. A drawback is that graphite-silicon composite anode materials tend to degrade during the charge/discharge cycles, leading to decreased storage capacity over time. This degradation is associated with the size of the silicon particles, where large, micrometer-sized silicon particles are more susceptible to instability than smaller, nanometre-sized particles. To address this issue, we present an investigation using laser-assisted processing of nano-graphite-silicon composites. This process uses low-cost micrometer-sized silicon particles mixed with nano-graphite powder and a 1064 nm continuous wave laser to process the nano-graphite-silicon-coated anode material under various conditions and atmospheres (ambient and nitrogen). The performance of the lithium-ion battery is affected by different processing conditions. Specifically, the intensity of the 0.25V and 0.5V anodic peaks, which indicate the delithiation of silicon, is particularly affected, with the inclusion of an additional broader shoulder peak at around 0.3-0.35V. Our investigation suggests that laser-assisted processing of nano-graphite-silicon-composite materials is a scalable concept with the potential to improve the performance of nano-graphite-silicon anodes for lithium-ion batteries. 

Lithium-ion batteries are pivotal in modern energy storage, commonly utilizing graphite anodes for their high theoretical capacity and long cycle life. However, graphite anodes face inherent limitations, such as restricted lithium-ion storage capacity and slow diffusion rates. Enhancing the porosity of graphite and increasing d-spacing in expanded graphite anodes have been explored to improve lithium-ion diffusion and intercalation. Recent advancements suggest that nanoscale modifications, such as utilizing nano-graphite and graphene, can further enhance performance. Laser processing has emerged as a promising technique for synthesizing and modifying graphite and graphene-related materials, offering control over surface defects and microstructure. Here, we demonstrate an industrially compatible one-step laser processing method to transform a nano-graphite and graphene mixture into a nanoporous matrix, significantly improving lithium-ion battery performance. The laser-processed anodes demonstrated significantly enhanced specific capacities at all charge rates, with improved relative performance at higher charge rates. Additionally, long-term cycling at 1 C showed that laser-processed cells outperformed their non-processed counterparts, with specific capacities of 323 and 241 mAh/g, respectively.

There is a growing demand for nanopowders and nanoparticles in fields like medicine, healthcare, optics, sensors, and environmental monitoring. To produce these particles, pulsed laser ablation in liquid is an emerging technology offering numerous benefits over more commonly used methods like chemical synthesis, despite its relatively low production rate. For photonics applications, the production of NPs via pulsed laser ablation in liquid of rare-earth doped crystals like YAG and YVO4 is of significant interest due to their high absorption and emission cross-section, as well as high thermal conductivity. There is an increasing interest in developing laser-active hybrid materials, such as nanoparticle-doped silica optical fibers, potentially offering new and unique optical properties in, e.g., fiber lasers. In this work, we present an investigation of using pulsed laser ablation in liquid to synthesize Yb:YVO4 nanoparticles using a 1030 nm femtosecond pulsed laser under various conditions. The size and structure of Yb:YVO4 nanoparticles were affected by the pulse repetition rate (frequency) and solvent parameters, producing ovoid-like and spherical structures in deionized water and ammonia solution, respectively, with increased colloidal stability utilizing ammonia. The produced NPs are in the 10 - 150 nm range, with smaller NPs formed using the ammonia solution. The NPs are characterized by dynamic light scattering, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy. 

Cellulose laminates represent a remarkable convergence of natural materials and modern engineering, offering a wide range of versatile applications in sustainable packaging, construction, and advanced materials. In this study, novel all-cellulose laminates are developed using an environmentally friendly approach, where freshly regenerated cellulose II films are stacked without the need for solvents (for impregnation and/or partial dissolution), chemical modifications, or resins. The structural and mechanical properties of these all-cellulose laminates were thoroughly investigated. This simple and scalable procedure results in transparent laminates with exceptional mechanical properties comparable to or even superior to common plastics, with E-modulus higher than 9 GPa for a single layer and 7 GPa for the laminates. These laminates are malleable and can be easily patterned. Depending on the number of layers, they can be thin and flexible (with just one layer) or thick and rigid (with three layers). Laminates were also doped with 10 wt% undissolved fibers without compromising their characteristics. These innovative all-cellulose laminates present a robust, eco-friendly alternative to traditional synthetic materials, thus bridging the gap between environmental responsibility and high-performance functionality. 

Optical cooling in Yb-doped silica fibers using anti-Stokes fluorescence has become a subject of great interest in the fiber laser community. This paper provides an update on the development of silica fibers designed specifically to enhance their cooling properties. This growing list includes a new, nearly single-mode fiber with a borophosphosilicate core that produced –65 mK of cooling with only 260 mW of 1040-nm pump power. The silica compositions that have now been successfully cooled at atmospheric pressure by anti-Stokes fluorescence by our team include aluminosilicate, aluminofluorosilicate, borophosphosilicate, and aluminosilicate doped with one of three different alkali-earth nanoparticles (Ba, Sr, and Ca). By fitting the measured temperature dependence of the cooled fiber on pump power, two key parameters that control the degree of cooling are inferred, namely the critical quenching concentration and the absorptive loss due to impurities. The inferred values compiled for the fibers that cooled indicate that the extracted heat is highest when the Yb concentration is 2 wt.% or more (to maximize heat extraction), the Al concentration is ~0.8 wt.% or greater (to reduce quenching), and the absorptive loss is below approximately 15 dB/km, and ideally below 5 dB/km (to minimize heating due to pump absorption). Only two of the reported fibers, an LaF3-doped and an LuF3-doped nanoparticle fiber, did not cool, because their Yb and Al concentrations were not sufficiently high. This analysis shows that through careful composition control (especially the Al and Yb concentrations) and minimization of the OH contamination, a new generation of Yb-doped silica fibers is emerging with higher Yb concentrations, greater resistance to quenching, and lower residual loss than commercial Yb-doped fibers. They can be expected to have a significant impact not only on optically cooled devices but also on a much broader range of fiber lasers and amplifiers. 

For as long as light and matter have partnered, impurities have played a role in optical system performance. This remains generally true for photonic heat engines and especially the case for optical refrigeration. Building on the history of light and glass, including the materials development of low loss telecom fibers, this paper briefly discusses the sources of heat generation in materials and all-material means for their reduction. Particularly attention will be paid to active optical fibers and connect thermal management to parasitic optical nonlinearities, both critical to high and low power amplifier and laser systems.