Abstract
The electron spin dynamics of ions in YAG crystals is studied by time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy with an alternating left and right circularly polarized continuous-wave laser modulation technique. The electron spin relaxation due to hyperfine interaction with randomly oriented nuclear spins can be efficiently suppressed by a weak external longitudinal magnetic field. The suppression of the hyperfine-induced spin relaxation makes the electron spin polarization increase from 0.001 to 0.016 for the lowest state, and from 0.08 to 0.32 for the lowest state. The suppression magnetic fields for the electrons are several times weaker than that for the electrons, dependent on the crystal orientation. The dispersion of the local hyperfine field distribution is isotropic and equal to 4.0 mT for the electrons, and anisotropic for the electrons with . The hyperfine coupling strength for the electrons is ∼4 times weaker than that for the electrons.
- Received 31 August 2018
- Revised 14 November 2018
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.99.024308
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