Slow light with persistent spectral hole burning in waveguides

We model numerically the reshaping of a weak probe pulse propagating in an absorptive, optically dense, persistent spectral hole burning medium under conditions of slow group velocity. Saturated holes are burned in waveguide geometry by illumination in the transverse direction with low absorption, whereas the probing is carried out in longitudinal wave guiding directions with high absorption. We show that by choosing optimum hole spectrum, the Gaussian probe pulse may be delayed by several times its original duration, while overall pulse shape distortion is less than 1% and average energy loss is less than 10%.     

A new system of photon-gated persistent spectral hole burning material for frequency-domain optical storage

Two-color persistent spectral hole-burning was achieved for the first time for a new system Zn-tetrabenzoporphin-crotonic acid/phenoxy resin at 20 K. The time dependence experiments show that the spectral holes are persistent at the temperature of 20 K. These holes can be erased by laser irradiation and reversible holeburning is performed. The hole width remains almost constant during the erasing process.     

Fluorescence and persistent spectral hole burning of Eu in Ge-Ga-S-KBr glasses

Fluorescence and efficient persistent spectral hole burning of Eu³⁺ at 77 K were observed in chalcohalide glasses. The depth of the hole was approximately 30% after a burning process of 1 min with 50 mW power, and it was completely erased with Ar⁺ laser irradiation. The hole survived room temperature heat treatment and showed good thermal stability. The hole-burning mechanism was most probably the photo-reduction of Eu³⁺→Eu²⁺. Fluorescence from Eu³⁺ decreased with increasing temperature and disappeared at the temperature above ∼130 K.     

Decay times of surface plasmon excitation in metal nanoparticles by persistent spectral hole burning

We describe a new technique to determine the homogeneous linewidths of surface plasmon resonances of metal nanoparticles and thus measure the decay time of this collective electron excitation. The method is based on spectral hole burning and has been applied to supported oblate Ag particles with radii of 7.5 nm. From the experimental results and a theoretical model of hole burning the linewidth of 260 meV corresponding to a decay time of 4.8 fs was extracted. This value is shorter than expected for damping by bulk electron scattering. We conclude that additional damping mechanisms have been observed and reflect confinement of the electrons in nanoparticles with sizes below 10 nm.     

Programmable frequency reference for subkilohertz laser stabilization by use of persistent spectral hole burning

We report what is believed to be the first demonstration of laser frequency stabilization directly to persistent spectral holes in a solid-state material. The frequency reference material was deuterated CaF(2): Tm(3+) prepared with 25-MHz-wide persistent spectral holes on the H(6)(3)?H(4)(3) transition at 798 nm. The beat frequency between two lasers that were independently locked to persistent spectral holes in separate crystal samples showed typical root Allan variances of 780+/-120Hz for 20-50-ms integration times.     

Programmable laser frequency stabilization at 1523 nm by use of persistent spectral hole burning

Diode laser frequency stability of 2 kHz to 680 Hz over 20 ms to 500 s has been demonstrated at 1523 nm in the technologically important communication band by use of persistent spectral holes in the inhomogeneously broadened 4I15/2 --> 4I13/2 optical absorption of Er3+:D-:CaF2. Laser frequency stabilization was realized without vibrational or acoustical isolation of either the laser or spectral hole frequency reference, providing the means for implementing a versatile, compact, stable source.     

光谱烧孔技术

论述了光谱烧孔技术的动力学理论模型 ;介绍了单光子烧孔和多光子烧孔所取得的实验结果 ;讨论了光谱烧孔的发展趋势 :提高烧孔度 ,实现室温烧孔和提高探测及读出时的信噪比。问题的关键在于光致填孔机制的研究。同时提出将它投入实际应用亟待解决的问题 ,即作为一种可能的高密度频域光信息存储手段所亟待解决的问题是开发适应于此技术的新材料 ,深入研究材料体系的烧扎特性     

Room-temperature persistent spectral hole burning of Eu(3+) in sodium aluminosilicate glasses

Persistent spectral hole burning has been observed at 77 K, 180 K, and room temperature for Eu(3+) in sodium aluminosilicate glass melted under a reducing atmosphere. In particular, room-temperature persistent spectral hole burning is reported for the first time to our knowledge in Eu(3+) -doped materials. The persistent hole is accompanied by no antiholes and lasts for 1 h at least. The thermal stability of the hole is greater than that of a persistent hole burned for Eu(3+) in sodium aluminosilicate glass melted in air.     

Ultrashort-laser-pulse-induced persistent spectral hole burning of Eu(3+) in sodium borate glasses

We have observed persistent spectral hole burning (PSHB) in Eu(3+) -doped sodium borate glasses irradiated with near-IR femtosecond laser pulses. As-prepared glasses, i.e., glasses melted in air, do not show PSHB even at low temperatures (~77K) , but room-temperature PSHB occurs in the irradiated glasses. The exposure to IR radiation causes both the reduction of Eu(3+) to Eu(2+) and the formation of intrinsic defects. We propose that the photoinduced redistribution of electric charges between Eu(3+) to Eu(2+) is responsible for the occurrence of PSHB.     

Room-temperature spectral hole burning in an engineered inhomogeneously broadened resonance

We observe spectral hole burning in a room-temperature optical fiber pumped by a spectrally broadened pump beam. This beam drives the stimulated Brillouin process, creating an inhomogeneously broadened resonance in the material whose shape can be engineered by tailoring the beam's spectrum. A monochromatic saturating beam "burns" a narrow spectral hole that is approximately 10(4) times narrower than the inhomogeneous width of the resonance. This research paves the way toward agile optical information processing and storage using standard telecommunication components.     

Converting Eu3+ between defect sites in BaFCl for persistent spectral hole burning

Persistent spectral hole burning (PSHB) is demonstrated in the (7)F(0)-->(5)D(0) optical transition of Eu(3+) doped into crystals of BaFCl. For Eu(3+) ions at two different lattice sites, persistent holes can be burned at temperatures below 77 K. The characteristics of the hole-burning process suggest that the observed PSHB effect is due to laser-excitation-induced site-to-site conversion. One type of Eu(3+) site is converted into another type of defect site. This process is not optically reversible, and holes can be erased only when the temperature increases to 150 K.     

Subnanosecond response time of a laser beam modulator based on persistent spectral hole burning

Electric-field-induced changes of a persistent spectral hole vary the transmission of a perylene doped polymer film used in a light-guiding configuration for the modulation of laser light. From the comparison of the measured transmitted laser power with a computer simulation we conclude that the response time is less than 300 ps.     

Chemical interface damping of surface plasmon excitation in metal nanoparticles: a study by persistent spectral hole burning

As demonstrated recently, persistent spectral hole burning in the optical spectra of metal nanoparticles makes possible the determination of the ultrafast dephasing time T₂ of surface plasmon excitation. Here, the influence of the chemical environment on the dephasing process is investigated under ultrahigh vacuum conditions by depositing an adsorbate on the nanoparticles. By comparing the optical spectra and the widths of the generated holes of the nanoparticles with and without adsorbate coverage, the influence of chemical interface damping on the dephasing process is examined. The potential of the novel procedure is demonstrated for silver nanoparticles on sapphire and quartz substrates using SO₂ as the adsorbate. A drastic decrease of T₂ for the adsorbate-covered nanoparticles is observed and explained by dynamic charge transfer of electrons from the particles into and out of adsorbate states of the SO₂ molecules. PACS 78.67.Bf; 61.46.+w; 71.45.Gm; 73.22.Lp; 68.43.-h     

Optical decoherence and persistent spectral hole burning in Tm:LiNbO3

We report studies of decoherence and spectral hole burning for the 794 nm optical transition of thulium-doped lithium niobate. In addition to transient spectral holes due to the ³H₄ and ³F₄ excited states of Tm³⁺, persistent spectral holes with lifetimes of up to minutes were observed when a magnetic field of a few hundred Gauss was applied. The observed anti-hole structure identified the hole burning mechanism as population storage in the ¹⁶⁹Tm nuclear hyperfine levels. In addition, the magnetic field was effective in suppressing spectral diffusion, increasing the phase memory lifetime from 11 μs at zero field to 23 μs in a field of 320 Gauss applied along the crystal’s c-axis. Coupling between Tm³⁺ and the ⁷Li and ⁹³Nb spins in the host lattice was also observed and a quadrupole shift of 22 kHz was measured for ⁷Li at 1.7 K. A Stark shift of 18 kHz cm/V was measured for the optical transition with the electric field applied parallel to the c-axis.     

Pressure effects on relaxation in a polymer glass: A persistent spectral hole burning study

The influence of hydrostatic pressure in the range of some kilobars on low-temperature (T < 20 K) relaxation in a polymer (polystyrene) glass after optical excitation of a probe chromophore in it is studied using two different kinds of spectral hole burning experiments—under isothermal-isobaric and in temperature cycling conditions. In the first case, the temperature dependence of the hole width reflects the dynamics of interaction of the electronic transition in a probe molecule with soft localized vibrational modes and with two-level systems, whereas, in the second case, the observed residual hole broadening after the temperature cycle arises from activated (overbarrier) transitions in almost symmetric double-well soft potentials. It is shown that both these processes are essentially suppressed by the applied hydrostatic pressure (the hole width in the first case and its increment in the second case are both reduced about twofold at 5 kbar). An extension of the soft potential model for glasses is proposed explaining in a coherent manner both effects. Its essential points are the presence in the potential of an extra term linear in pressure and the soft coordinate and an assumption about asymmetric distribution of the cubic anharmonicity parameter ξ in the potential.     

Optical decoherence and persistent spectral hole burning in Er:LiNbO3

Developing new resonant optical materials for spatial-spectral holography and quantum information applications requires detailed knowledge of the decoherence and population relaxation dynamics for the quantum states involved in the optical transitions, motivating the need for fundamental material studies. We report recent progress in studying these properties in erbium-doped lithium niobate at liquid helium temperatures. The influence of temperature, applied magnetic fields, measurement timescale, and dopant concentration were probed using photon echo spectroscopy and time-resolved spectral hole burning on the 1532 nm transition of Er³⁺:LiNbO₃. Effects of spectral diffusion due to interactions between Er³⁺ ions and between the Er³⁺ ion and ⁷Li and ⁹³Nb nuclear spins in the host lattice were observed. In addition, long-lived persistent spectral storage of seconds to minutes was observed due to non-equilibrium population redistribution among superhyperfine states.     

Optical decoherence times and spectral diffusion in an Er-doped optical fiber measured by two-pulse echoes, stimulated photon echoes, and spectral hole burning

Two-pulse and stimulated photon echoes and spectral hole burning were measured on the transition from the lowest component of the ⁴I_15/2 manifold to the lowest component of ⁴I_13/2 of Er³⁺ in a silicate optical fiber at 1.6 K. The two-pulse echo decays gave decoherence times as long as 230 ns for magnetic fields above 2 T. A large field dependent contribution to the homogeneous line width of >2 MHz was found and interpreted in terms of coupling to magnetic tunneling modes (TLS) in the glass. The stimulated echoes measured at 2 T showed spectral diffusion of 0.8 MHz/decade of time between 0.4 and 500 μs. Spectral diffusion in this high field region is attributed to coupling to elastic TLS modes which have a distribution of flip rates in glasses. Time-resolved spectral hole burning at very low field showed stronger spectral diffusion of 5.7 MHz/decade of time, attributed to coupling to magnetic spin-elastic TLS modes.     

Promises of quantum informatics in the context of comparison with spatial-temporal holography based on persistent spectral hole burning

It is common to compare what is promised by quantum informatics with what is achieved by classical (usual) digital electronic computers. This comparison shows great advantages of quantum informatics. The paper presents a comparison with optical holography based on persistent hole burning. It is shown that the distributed recording, parallel processing, correction of mistakes, associative memory, time arrow, time reversal, time lens, and ultrafast time shutter are already reliable realized by this method. The problem of conserving the state phase during the entire cycle of recording, storage, and extraction of information, which is a fundamental challenge for quantum informatics, is elegantly solved in the spatial-temporal holography. The conservation of phase memory is required only during recording. Theoretical studies and experiments aimed at the development of quantum informatics can give a deeper knowledge of the quantum theory, irrespective of whether practical results will be obtained or not. It is hoped that this, in turn, will refine the understanding of causality and fundamental problems of natural sciences and philosophy.