Fluoride glass research in France: fundamentals and applications

The paper reviews research activities on fluoride grasses in France over th e last 10 years. Glass compositions for industrial applications as well as new glasses from academic research are presented. They include heavy-metal fluoride glasses, fluorochloride glasses and oxyfluoride glasses. Besides p hysico-chemical properties, special attention is paid to the optical charac teristics of heavy-metal fluoride glasses. They exhibit broader infrared tr ansparency than oxides, which results in unique optical properties and appl ications, especially in the fields of fiber lasers and optical amplifiers o perating at wavelengths not accessible with silica. (C) 2001 Elsevier Scien ce B.V. All rights reserved.