Coherent control of the photonic spin Hall effect by Er3+ ion concentration in an Er3+-doped YAG crystal

Abstract

We theoretically investigate the effect of doped Er3+ ion concentration on the spin Hall effect (SHE) of light reflected from a Kretschmann-Raether (K-R) structure. In such a structure, an Er3+-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG) crystal acts as the substrate. The excitation of surface plasmon resonance(SPR) leads to the enhancement of the spin splitting of the reflected beam in the resonance reflection dip. Due to the variation of electric dipole moment and energy level lifetime induced by Er3+ ion concentration, the spin-dependent transverse shift is sensitively dependent upon Er3+ ion concentration. Furthermore, under different concentrations of Er3+ ion, the intensity and detuning of the control field have different effects on the magnitude, sign and position of the transverse shift. More importantly, the photonic SHE can be significantly enhanced via choosing the suitable values of the control intensity and detuning at 15% Er3+ ion concentration. Therefore, our scheme may provide a basis for selecting suitable Er3+ ion concentration to enhance the SHE of light in future integrated systems.