Optical absorption and Zeeman effect of Cu2+ in tetrahedrally coordinated crystals.

Abstract

We present a group-theoretical study of the energy spectrum of the $^{2}$D term of ${\mathrm{Cu}}^{2+}$ ions in zinc-blende and wurtzite crystal structures. In the former, the site symmetry is ${\mathit{T}}_{\mathit{d}}$ while in the latter it is ${\mathit{C}}_{3\mathit{v}}$. We are primarily concerned with the Zeeman effect. An analysis is given of the g factors, the optical selection rules, and the relative intensities of the Zeeman components for transitions within the $^{2}$D manifold of the free ion. The predicted relative intensities are deduced from data in the absence of an external magnetic field assuming that the strength of the spin-orbit coupling of the ion in the crystal is equal to that of the free ion.