Abstract
CsLiB_6O_<10> (CLBO) is a suitable nonlinear-optical crystal for ultraviolet (UV) light generation. To fabricate high-power UV light source, high-quality crystals are required. The CLBO crystals are usually grown by the Top-Seeded Solution Growth method from self-flux solution. In general, there exists hetero-phase components and compositional nonuniformity when the solution of large volume is prepared. These factors are understood to have adverse effect on the quality of grown crystals. Recently, we succeeded in obtaining high-quality singlephase sintered powder by pre-treating the starting materials. The crystal grown from this material had 1.6-fold higher bulk laser-induced damage threshold than that of conventional crystals and the value was fairly homogeneous throughout the crystal. It was found that the concentration of OH groups in the crystal was almost the same as that of conventional crystals.
