Raman optical amplification properties of sodium-niobium-phosphate glasses

In this paper, the optical dispersion properties and the Raman gain of sodium phosphate glasses containing niobium oxide at increasing concentrations have been systematically investigated, with the aim of establishing a potential enhancement of the Raman gain and its bandwidth with respect to silica. A broadening of the bandwidth and a higher peak Raman gain (approximately 17 times) than in silica glass have been observed at high niobium oxide molar content. Our findings point out that sodium-niobium-phosphate glasses could be utilized for the realization of Raman amplifiers.