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Interference effects in transient Kerr spectra of a semiconductor multilayer structure
Zhigang Chen1, Rudolf Bratschitsch, Steven T Cundiff
1JILA, University of Colorado and National Institute of Standards and Technology, and Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0440, USA.
Optics Letters
|September 30, 2005
Summary
Transient Faraday and Kerr effects in GaAs quantum wells were studied. Multiple reflections were found to cause deviations from the Kramers-Kronig relation in Kerr spectra.
Area of Science:
- Solid State Physics
- Quantum Optics
- Materials Science
Background:
- Exciton resonances in semiconductor quantum wells are crucial for optoelectronic applications.
- Understanding optical phenomena like Faraday and Kerr effects provides insights into material properties.
Purpose of the Study:
- To experimentally investigate transient Faraday and Kerr effects near exciton resonances in a GaAs multiple quantum well.
- To quantitatively model the observed optical spectra using a transfer matrix method.
- To analyze the relationship between these effects and the Kramers-Kronig relation.
Main Methods:
- Experimental measurement of transient Faraday and Kerr spectra.
- Development and application of a multilayer transfer matrix model for spectral analysis.
- Comparison of experimental results with theoretical predictions.
Main Results:
- Quantitative agreement between the transfer matrix model and experimental linear transmission/reflectivity spectra.
- Observed Faraday and Kerr spectra exhibit deviations from the Kramers-Kronig relation.
- Multiple reflection effects were identified as the cause for the deviation in Kerr spectra.
Conclusions:
- The transfer matrix model accurately describes optical spectra in GaAs multiple quantum wells.
- The Kramers-Kronig relation is not universally obeyed for transient Kerr spectra due to multiple reflections.
- This finding has implications for the optical characterization of quantum well structures.