ESR and spin-lattice relaxation of Nd3+ in silicates of various structures

ESR studies have been made on Nd³⁺ in certain orthosilicate and pyrosilicate single crystals. It is found that Nd³⁺ ions produce a type of activator center, and the principal values of the chief factors have been measured. The ESR spectra are compared with structural data on the crystals. The spin-lattice relaxation gives the positions of the nearest excited Stark level of Nd³⁺ in the silicates.Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 7, pp. 35–38, July, 1982.We are indebted to A. M. Korovkin for providing the single crystals, and to A. M. Tkachuk and L. G. Morozova for providing the optical data on the silicates.