Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Journal of Applied Physics

High-resolution spectroscopy and optical hole burning studies of the F7→5D transition of europium-doped calcium fluoride

Ranjit S. Pandher, Angela Davis, Andre Jackson, Bommareddi Rami Reddy

Published Apr 1, 2000• 5 citations
Publisher

Abstract

High-resolution spectroscopic study of the F07→5D0 transition revealed more than 40 different sites for the rare-earth ion. The multisite behavior was found to be due to clustering of the dopants and dopant induced microscopic defects. Hole-burning efficiencies were measured for some sites.
DOI
10.1063/1.372382

Related papers

Laser Hole Burning Spectroscopy: A High Resolution Probe of Molecular Environments.

R. M. Macfarlane, Robert M. Shelby

Laser induced hole burning in optical absorption bands of low temperature solids has been investigated with emphasis on mechanisms for population hole burning, the interactions with the environment which limit the hole widths and the use of hole burning for ultra high resolution spectroscopy. Hole burning was observed in a wide range of solids including organic and organometallic molecules in crystals and rare earth ions in crystals and glasses. The mechanisms for hole burning also varied widely and a new mechanism involving optically induced nuclear spin flips of near neighbor nuclei was discovered. Examples of hole burning in new classes of materials are presented here for the first time, namely inorganic glasses (silicate glasses containing Nd(3+), Pr(3+) or Eu(3+)) and undoped stoichiometric compounds (e.g., EuP5O14). Hole recovery was used to determine nuclear spin lattice relaxation rates in praseodymium doped crystals. For allowed optical transitions (e.g., singlet states of zinc porphyrin, dibromoindigo and color centers in alkali halides) the hole widths at 2K are limited by population decay to approximately 50 MHz. For longer lived optical levels in crystalline materials, e.g., those containing rare earth ions, the hole widths are narrower (less than 10 MHz) and are limited by dynamical interactions with surrounding nuclei. In amorphous materials such as europium doped silicate glass, hole widths are much broader, being limited by low frequency tunneling motions. Hole burning measurements were complemented by time domain coherent transient (photon echo, and optical free decay) measurements of homogeneous linewidths which enabled us to measure optical resonances as narrow as 760 Hz in Eu(3+):Y2O3.

Final Report•Jun 1, 1981•0 citations

Hole burning of rare earth doped calcium fluoride

Thomas R. Dyke, Nick Strickland, J. P. D. Martin +1 more

Journal of Luminescence•Dec 1, 1995•1 citation

Hole-Burning of Rare Earth Ions with kHz Resolution

Neil B. Manson, Matthew J. Sellars, Peter Fisk +1 more

4fn ⇒ 4fn transitions of trivalent rare earth ions doped in crystals frequently give sharp spectral lines. The transitions associated with the higher levels of a multiplet can be relatively sharp, 10-1000 GHz, where the width is determined by the decay rate of the levels by spontaneous phonon emission to lower levels. The transitions and their linewidth can be determined using conventional absorption or excitation techniques. On the other hand the transitions associated with the meta-stable lower levels typically give much sharper features with linewidths of 1 - 100 GHz and the widths are determined by the inhomogeneities of the crystal field. These inhomogeneous linewdths can be obtained by conventional spectroscopic techniques but the homogeneous linewidth requires more innovative techniques such as optical holeburning or photon echoes. The time domain photon echo measurements do not requiring a high resolution source and have frequently been used to establish that the homogeneous linewidth of such transitions. The lines can be very narrow down to the kHz regime [1,2]. Should complimentary measurements be attempted in the frequency domain utilising holeburning a special frequency stabilised lasers is required and one has been developed in association with the current work [3].

Spectral Hole-Burning and Related Spectroscopies: Science and Applications•Jan 1, 1994•0 citations

Optical coherence and hyperfine structure of the 7F0-5D0 transition in EuCaWO4

An, Xiantong, Weiye Sun, Zhehao Xu +6 more

Rare-earth ions doped in crystals with low nuclear-spin densities are highly promising candidates for quantum technology applications. In this study, we investigated the spectroscopic properties of the 7F0 - 5 D0 optical and the hyperfine transitions of Eu3+ ions in a CaWO4 crystal, where the nuclear spin arises solely from the 183W isotope, with a natural abundance of 14%. At a temperature of 3 K, we experimentally identified four distinct crystal field environments for Eu3+ ions in a 0.1 at.% Eu3+ doped CaWO4 crystal. The optical coherence properties of Eu3+ ions in these environments were characterized. Additionally, we resolved the hyperfine structures in the 7F0 ground state and 5D0 excited state, and determined the 7F0 ground state lifetimes using spectral hole-burning techniques. These findings highlight the significant potential of Eu3+:CaWO4 for optical quantum memory applications.

arXiv:2501.16407•Jan 27, 2025•0 citations

Correlated inhomogeneous absorption profiles across distinct optical transitions in a rare-earth doped crystal

Flora Segur, Sacha Welinski, Alban Ferrier +2 more

In rare-earth ion-doped crystals, inhomogeneous absorption profiles reflect the distribution of local environments experienced by individual ions. While each optical transition probes this distribution differently, their fine spectral structures may retain correlations arising from shared local perturbations. In this paper, we present a low-temperature, high-resolution spectroscopic study in Er$^{3+}$:YSO of the transition $^{4}I_{15/2}$ - $^{4}I_{11/2}$ at 980 nm and compare it to the well-known transition $^{4}I_{15/2}$ - $^{4}I_{13/2}$ at 1.5 $μ$m. Using spectral hole burning on one transition while monitoring the other, we uncover for the first time spectral correlations between two optical transitions, providing new insight into the microscopic origin of inhomogeneous distributions in rare-earth-doped crystals.

physics.opticsCross-listedarXiv:2603.15630•Physical review. B./Physical review. B•Feb 26, 2026•0 citations

Investigations of spectral dynamics in rare earth ion doped crystals using high resolution laser techniques

Graf, Felix R.

Solids containing rare earth (RE) ions have attracted spectroscopists' attention since the beginning of this century.In the last 30 years, their extremely narrow spectral features in combination with the use of non linear spectroscopy have served to sensitively measure ion-solid interactions and to progressively observe narrower homogeneous linewidths.The potential for using RE ion doped crystals as optical storage materials and processors has lately been a driving force in their investigations, Here, the ratio of inhomogeneous to homogeneous linewidth is regarded as an adequate measure of storage density and can become as big as 10 7 at cryogenic temperatures.Therefore, the analysis of line broadening is of fundamental as well as applied interest.This work is concerned with the investigation of interactions of RE ions with their environment.By means of a laser with a kilohertz resolution and non-linear spectroscopy, spectral dynamics as a function of intrinsic, external electric field, or light-pulse induced perturbations are analyzed on different time scales.In the first part, the theoretical background for the spectroscopy of RE ion doped crystals is outlined.The energy levels are presented and it is shown that due to their electronic properties RE ions have spectrally narrow electronic transitions, sometimes in the sub-kHz regime.The investigations of these narrow spectral features on the seconds to minutes time scale require very stable tunable laser sources.At present, such devices are not commercially available.In the second part, the performance of ahorne built laser system is characterized using persistent spectral holes, The results show that frequency selective materials can be used as powerful tools for the high resolution Vlll Abstract spectral analysis of laser sources.Complementary to that, they give a measure for the long term evolution of the spectral holes for the particular hole burning substance.In the third part, the effect of an external electric field on RE ion doped crystals is investigated.It is shown that for these systems the electric field induced frequency shifts are fully reversible.A general theory of Stark splittings of RE doped crystals is introduced and two methods are presented which allow for the determination of the magnitude and orientation of the electric dipole moment differences with sub-degree accuracy.Finally in the last part, spectral line broadening mechanisms of RE ion doped crystals are discussed and investigated by means of two-pulse photon echoes.Through variation of the experimental parameters, a discrimination between the different contributions is partly achieved and characteristic properties for different dephasing mechanisms are presented.In combination with the measurements from the third part, quantitative predictions of the electric dipole-dipole induced broadening are carried out, which are compared to the experimental results,

•Jan 1, 1998•5 citations
Laser induced hole burning in optical absorption bands of low temperature solids has been investigated with emphasis on mechanisms for population hole burning, the interactions with the environment which limit the hole widths and the use of hole burning for ultra high resolution spectroscopy. Hole burning was observed in a wide range of solids including organic and organometallic molecules in crystals and rare earth ions in crystals and glasses. The mechanisms for hole burning also varied widely and a new mechanism involving optically induced nuclear spin flips of near neighbor nuclei was discovered. Examples of hole burning in new classes of materials are presented here for the first time, namely inorganic glasses (silicate glasses containing Nd(3+), Pr(3+) or Eu(3+)) and undoped stoichiometric compounds (e.g., EuP5O14). Hole recovery was used to determine nuclear spin lattice relaxation rates in praseodymium doped crystals. For allowed optical transitions (e.g., singlet states of zinc porphyrin, dibromoindigo and color centers in alkali halides) the hole widths at 2K are limited by population decay to approximately 50 MHz. For longer lived optical levels in crystalline materials, e.g., those containing rare earth ions, the hole widths are narrower (less than 10 MHz) and are limited by dynamical interactions with surrounding nuclei. In amorphous materials such as europium doped silicate glass, hole widths are much broader, being limited by low frequency tunneling motions. Hole burning measurements were complemented by time domain coherent transient (photon echo, and optical free decay) measurements of homogeneous linewidths which enabled us to measure optical resonances as narrow as 760 Hz in Eu(3+):Y2O3.
4fn ⇒ 4fn transitions of trivalent rare earth ions doped in crystals frequently give sharp spectral lines. The transitions associated with the higher levels of a multiplet can be relatively sharp, 10-1000 GHz, where the width is determined by the decay rate of the levels by spontaneous phonon emission to lower levels. The transitions and their linewidth can be determined using conventional absorption or excitation techniques. On the other hand the transitions associated with the meta-stable lower levels typically give much sharper features with linewidths of 1 - 100 GHz and the widths are determined by the inhomogeneities of the crystal field. These inhomogeneous linewdths can be obtained by conventional spectroscopic techniques but the homogeneous linewidth requires more innovative techniques such as optical holeburning or photon echoes. The time domain photon echo measurements do not requiring a high resolution source and have frequently been used to establish that the homogeneous linewidth of such transitions. The lines can be very narrow down to the kHz regime [1,2]. Should complimentary measurements be attempted in the frequency domain utilising holeburning a special frequency stabilised lasers is required and one has been developed in association with the current work [3].
Rare-earth ions doped in crystals with low nuclear-spin densities are highly promising candidates for quantum technology applications. In this study, we investigated the spectroscopic properties of the 7F0 - 5 D0 optical and the hyperfine transitions of Eu3+ ions in a CaWO4 crystal, where the nuclear spin arises solely from the 183W isotope, with a natural abundance of 14%. At a temperature of 3 K, we experimentally identified four distinct crystal field environments for Eu3+ ions in a 0.1 at.% Eu3+ doped CaWO4 crystal. The optical coherence properties of Eu3+ ions in these environments were characterized. Additionally, we resolved the hyperfine structures in the 7F0 ground state and 5D0 excited state, and determined the 7F0 ground state lifetimes using spectral hole-burning techniques. These findings highlight the significant potential of Eu3+:CaWO4 for optical quantum memory applications.
In rare-earth ion-doped crystals, inhomogeneous absorption profiles reflect the distribution of local environments experienced by individual ions. While each optical transition probes this distribution differently, their fine spectral structures may retain correlations arising from shared local perturbations. In this paper, we present a low-temperature, high-resolution spectroscopic study in Er3+^{3+}3+:YSO of the transition 4I15/2^{4}I_{15/2}4I15/2​ - 4I11/2^{4}I_{11/2}4I11/2​ at 980 nm and compare it to the well-known transition 4I15/2^{4}I_{15/2}4I15/2​ - 4I13/2^{4}I_{13/2}4I13/2​ at 1.5 μμμm. Using spectral hole burning on one transition while monitoring the other, we uncover for the first time spectral correlations between two optical transitions, providing new insight into the microscopic origin of inhomogeneous distributions in rare-earth-doped crystals.
Solids containing rare earth (RE) ions have attracted spectroscopists' attention since the beginning of this century.In the last 30 years, their extremely narrow spectral features in combination with the use of non linear spectroscopy have served to sensitively measure ion-solid interactions and to progressively observe narrower homogeneous linewidths.The potential for using RE ion doped crystals as optical storage materials and processors has lately been a driving force in their investigations, Here, the ratio of inhomogeneous to homogeneous linewidth is regarded as an adequate measure of storage density and can become as big as 10 7 at cryogenic temperatures.Therefore, the analysis of line broadening is of fundamental as well as applied interest.This work is concerned with the investigation of interactions of RE ions with their environment.By means of a laser with a kilohertz resolution and non-linear spectroscopy, spectral dynamics as a function of intrinsic, external electric field, or light-pulse induced perturbations are analyzed on different time scales.In the first part, the theoretical background for the spectroscopy of RE ion doped crystals is outlined.The energy levels are presented and it is shown that due to their electronic properties RE ions have spectrally narrow electronic transitions, sometimes in the sub-kHz regime.The investigations of these narrow spectral features on the seconds to minutes time scale require very stable tunable laser sources.At present, such devices are not commercially available.In the second part, the performance of ahorne built laser system is characterized using persistent spectral holes, The results show that frequency selective materials can be used as powerful tools for the high resolution Vlll Abstract spectral analysis of laser sources.Complementary to that, they give a measure for the long term evolution of the spectral holes for the particular hole burning substance.In the third part, the effect of an external electric field on RE ion doped crystals is investigated.It is shown that for these systems the electric field induced frequency shifts are fully reversible.A general theory of Stark splittings of RE doped crystals is introduced and two methods are presented which allow for the determination of the magnitude and orientation of the electric dipole moment differences with sub-degree accuracy.Finally in the last part, spectral line broadening mechanisms of RE ion doped crystals are discussed and investigated by means of two-pulse photon echoes.Through variation of the experimental parameters, a discrimination between the different contributions is partly achieved and characteristic properties for different dephasing mechanisms are presented.In combination with the measurements from the third part, quantitative predictions of the electric dipole-dipole induced broadening are carried out, which are compared to the experimental results,