921 research outputs found
Optical manipulation of a single Mn spin in a CdTe-based quantum dot
A system of two coupled CdTe quantum dots, one of them containing a single Mn
ion, was studied in continuous wave and modulated photoluminescence,
photoluminescence excitation, and photon correlation experiments. Optical
writing of information in the spin state of the Mn ion has been demonstrated,
using orientation of the Mn spin by spin-polarized carriers transferred from
the neighbor quantum dot. Mn spin orientation time values from 20 ns to 100 ns
were measured, depending on the excitation power. Storage time of the
information in the Mn spin was found to be enhanced by application of a static
magnetic field of 1 T, reaching hundreds of microseconds in the dark. Simple
rate equation models were found to describe correctly static and dynamical
properties of the system.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Coupling a single electron to a Bose-Einstein condensate
The coupling of electrons to matter is at the heart of our understanding of
material properties such as electrical conductivity. One of the most intriguing
effects is that electron-phonon coupling can lead to the formation of a Cooper
pair out of two repelling electrons, the basis for BCS superconductivity. Here
we study the interaction of a single localized electron with a Bose-Einstein
condensate (BEC) and show that it can excite phonons and eventually set the
whole condensate into a collective oscillation. We find that the coupling is
surprisingly strong as compared to ionic impurities due to the more favorable
mass ratio. The electron is held in place by a single charged ionic core
forming a Rydberg bound state. This Rydberg electron is described by a
wavefunction extending to a size comparable to the dimensions of the BEC,
namely up to 8 micrometers. In such a state, corresponding to a principal
quantum number of n=202, the Rydberg electron is interacting with several tens
of thousands of condensed atoms contained within its orbit. We observe
surprisingly long lifetimes and finite size effects due to the electron
exploring the wings of the BEC. Based on our results we anticipate future
experiments on electron wavefunction imaging, investigation of phonon mediated
coupling of single electrons, and applications in quantum optics.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures and supplementary informatio
Antireflective photonic structure for coherent nonlinear spectroscopy of single magnetic quantum dots
This work presents epitaxial growth and optical spectroscopy of CdTe quantum
dots (QDs) in (Cd,Zn,Mg)Te barriers placed on the top of (Cd,Zn,Mg)Te
distributed Bragg reflector. The formed photonic mode in our half-cavity
structure permits to enhance the local excitation intensity and extraction
efficiency of the QD photoluminescence, while suppressing the reflectance
within the spectral range covering the QD transitions. This allows to perform
coherent, nonlinear, resonant spectroscopy of individual QDs. The coherence
dynamics of a charged exciton is measured via four-wave mixing, with the
estimated dephasing time ps. The same structure contains
QDs doped with single Mn ions, as detected in photoluminescence spectra.
Our work therefore paves the way toward investigating and controlling an
exciton coherence coupled, via ,- exchange interaction, with an
individual spin of a magnetic dopant.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
Light and electric field control of ferromagnetism in magnetic quantum structures
A strong influence of illumination and electric bias on the Curie temperature
and saturation value of the magnetization is demonstrated for semiconductor
structures containing a modulation-doped p-type Cd0.96Mn0.04Te quantum well
placed in various built-in electric fields. It is shown that both light beam
and bias voltage generate an isothermal and reversible cross-over between the
paramagnetic and ferromagnetic phases, in the way that is predetermined by the
structure design. The observed behavior is in quantitative agreement with the
expectations for systems, in which ferromagnetic interactions are mediated by
the weakly disordered two-dimensional hole liquid.Comment: 4 pages and 3 figure
Single spin optical read-out in CdTe/ZnTe quantum dot studied by photon correlation spectroscopy
Spin dynamics of a single electron and an exciton confined in CdTe/ZnTe
quantum dot is investigated by polarization-resolved correlation spectroscopy.
Spin memory effects extending over at least a few tens of nanoseconds have been
directly observed in magnetic field and described quantitatively in terms of a
simple rate equation model. We demonstrate an effective (68%) all-optical
read-out of the single carrier spin state through probing the degree of
circular polarization of exciton emission after capture of an oppositely
charged carrier. The perturbation introduced by the pulsed optical excitation
serving to study the spin dynamics has been found to be the main source of the
polarization loss in the read-out process. In the limit of low laser power the
read-out efficiency extrapolates to a value close to 100%. The measurements
allowed us as well to determine neutral exciton spin relaxation time ranging
from 3.4 +/- 0.1 ns at B = 0 T to 16 +/- 3 ns at B = 5 T.Comment: to appear in Phys. Rev.
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