Quantum Magnetooptics at High Fields

Abstract

Magnetooptics dates back to the discovery by Michael Faraday in 1845 of what is now known as the Faraday effect. Near the turn of the century the more important Zeeman effect was discovered. It was subsequently explained by Lorentz, who considered a classical treatment of a bound electron in a magnetic field. Later, when quantum mechanics was developed, these phenomena were treated more rigorously and the Zeeman effect was then used to elucidate the structure of the atom. The Faraday rotation was treated quantum mechanically by Rosenfeld (¹). This treatment only applied to atoms or to discrete impurity states in a host crystal. No significant progress in the treatment of magnetooptical phenomena in solids took place, however, until the 1950’s. Rapid progress then occurred because of a series of timely coincidences in the advancement of technology and the development of theoretical concepts. Technical breakthroughs included the synthesis of pure single crystals of high quality and perfection, the widespread use of low-temperature techniques in the laboratory, the duplication of high-intensity magnetic field facilities, advances in microwave, millimeter wave, and infrared techniques, and, most recently, the introduction of the laser. On the theoretical side the most important development was the recognition of the quantum properties of electrons in a solid in the presence of a magnetic field.