Background Transparent conductive oxide (TCO) layers are an important component of semiconductors within a number of electronic devices including solar cells, touchscreens, and light emitting diodes. Currently, indium tin oxide (ITO) is the most commonly used TCO material due its high electrical conductivity and high optical transparency. However,...

Rare-Earth (RE) related laser materials typically suffer from several key drawbacks. Materials are made by doping ceramic powders with rare earth elements, but this approach has many associated drawbacks. Low doping density limits the optical gain to a relatively low level, while doping levels which are too high cause nonhomogeneous dopant distributions....