Photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped quartz optical fiber and preparation method therefor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11780768-B2
Application number	US-201916972358-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 6, 2019
Priority date	Jun 6, 2018
Publication date	Oct 10, 2023
Grant date	Oct 10, 2023

Abstract

A photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped quartz optical fiber and a method for prpearing such a fiber are provided. Glass of a photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped quartz optical fiber core rod includes at least Yb 2 O 3 , Al 2 O 3 , P 2 O 5 , SiO 2 . The proportions of Yb 2 O 3 , Al 2 O 3 , and P 2 O 5 in the entire substance are Yb 2 O 3 : 0.05-0.3 mol %, Al 2 O 3 : 1-3 mol %, and P 2 O 5 : 1-5 mol %, respectively. In the preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped quartz optical fiber, a sol-gel method and an improved chemical vapor deposition method are combined. By using the molecular-level doping uniformity and the low preparation loss thereof respectively, ytterbium ions, aluminum ions and phosphorus ions are effectively doped in a quartz matrix, thereby effectively solving the problems in the optical fiber of high loss, photodarkening caused by cluster or the like, and a central refractive index dip.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A preparation method for a photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber, wherein, the preparation method at least includes: applying a sol-gel method and an immersion method to an improved chemical vapor deposition method to prepare a ytterbium-aluminum-phosphorus-doped silica soot body, and then after dehydration, decarburization, collapse, and drawing, a photodarkening-resistant silica optical fiber is finally prepared, wherein a silica transparent sol solution is obtained by at least the following step
S1: first weighing an ytterbium source, aluminum source, and phosphoric acid according to preset molar percentages, then preparing a mixed solution of ethyl orthosilicate, water, and ethanol, and finally adding the ytterbium source, aluminum source, and phosphoric acid in sequence into the mixed solution, and after the mixed solution is fully mixed, the silica transparent sol solution can be obtained,
wherein preparing the ytterbium-aluminum-phosphorus-doped silica soot body comprises the following steps:
S2: Polishing, injecting sulfur hexafluoride and oxygen into a deposition tube, then heating the deposition tube to 2000° C., and chemically polishing the inner wall of the deposition tube;
S3: Depositing, injecting silicon tetrachloride and oxygen to the polished deposition tube, heating the deposition tube to 1400-1600° C., and depositing silica soot body;
S4: Soaking, immersing part of the deposition tube in the silica transparent sol solution described in step S1 to obtain the ytterbium-aluminum-phosphorus-doped silica soot body.

2. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 1 , wherein the transparent silica transparent sol solution is a Yb 3+ , Al 3+ , and P 5+ triple-doped transparent silica transparent sol solution.

3. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 1 , wherein, the preparation method for preparing the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber after dehydration, decarburization, collapse, and fiber drawing of the ytterbium-aluminum-phosphorus-doped silica soot body includes the following steps:
S5: Dehydrating, injecting chlorine and oxygen into the deposition tube obtained in step S4, and heating the deposition tube to 900-1100° C. to complete the dehydration process;
S6: Decarburizing, continue to feed oxygen and helium into the deposition tube, and heating the deposition tube to 1100-1300° C. to complete the decarburization process;
S7: Collapsing, heating the deposition tube to above 2200° C., and shrinking the deposition tube into a solid rod to complete the preparation of the optical fiber preform;
S8: Optical fiber drawing, placing the optical fiber preform in the optical fiber drawing tower to form an optical fiber, and when the outer diameter of the optical fiber meets the requirements, glue is applied to the outside of the optical fiber and cured to obtain the desired optical fiber.

4. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 1 , wherein, the ytterbium source and aluminum source are respectively ytterbium chloride hexahydrate and aluminum chloride hexahydrate.

5. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 1 , wherein, the molar percentages of the ytterbium source, aluminum source and phosphoric acid are 0.05-0.3 mol %, 1-3 mol %, 1-5 mol %, and the volume ratio of ethyl orthosilicate, water, and ethanol in the mixed solution is 1:5:10.

6. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 1 , wherein, the flow rates of sulfur hexafluoride and oxygen in the step S2 are 50 sccm and 1000 sccm, respectively, and the heating is specifically 100 mm/min in a unidirectional positive movement of; the flow rates of silicon tetrachloride and oxygen in the step S3 are 200 sccm and 500-2000 sccm, respectively, and the heating is specifically 100 mm/m in a unidirectional positive direction; the soaking time in step S4 is greater than 30 minutes.

7. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 3 , wherein, the flow rates of chlorine and oxygen in the step S5 are 100 sccm and 1000 sccm, respectively, and the heating is 100 mm/min in a unidirectional positive direction; the flow rates of oxygen and helium in the step S6 are 1000 sccm and 1000 sccm, respectively, and the heating is 100 mm/min in a unidirectional positive direction; the heating in the step S7 specifically includes first moving forward at 20 mm/min, repeating 3-5 times, and then moving backward at 10 mm/min.

8. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 3 , wherein the method further comprises a step S80 before the step S8, wherein the S80 is processing the prepared optical fiber preform into a regular octagon.

9. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 3 , wherein, the glue coated in the step S8 is two layers, the inner layer is a low refractive index coating glue, and the outer layer is a high refractive index coating glue, which are respectively used as the outer layer structure and the retaining layer, to make a double-clad fiber.

10. The preparation method for the photodarkening-resistant ytterbium-doped silica optical fiber according to claim 3 , wherein, the heating tool in the steps S2-S7 is oxyhydrogen flame, the curing method in the step S8 is light curing or thermal curing.

Assignees

• Shanghai Inst Optics & Fine Mech Cas

Inventors

• Hu Lili
• Lou Fengguang
• Yu Chunlei
• Wang Meng
• Zhang Lei
• Xu Xiaoqing
• Chen Danping
• Wang Fan
• Guo Mengting

Classifications

• C03C13/046 Primary

  Multicomponent glass compositions · CPC title

• C03B37/018 Primary

  by glass deposition on a glass substrate, e.g. by {inside-, modified-, plasma- or plasma modified-} chemical vapour deposition {[ICVD, MCVD, PCVD, PMCVD], i.e. by thin layer coating on the inside or outside of a glass tube or on a glass rod} (C03B37/016 takes precedence; surface treatment of glass by coating with glass C03C17/02) · CPC title

• C03B37/025

  from reheated softened tubes, rods, fibres or filaments {, e.g. drawing fibres from preforms (draw-down of tubes, rods or preforms to reduced diameter preforms C03B37/0124)} · CPC title

• G02B6/036

  core or cladding comprising multiple layers {(multicore optical fibres G02B6/02042; microstructured properties G02B6/02295; omniguide fibres G02B6/023)} · CPC title

• C03B2203/32

  Eccentric core or cladding · CPC title