Correlations between microscopic properties and the photorefractive response for vanadium-doped CdTe

We present a summary of the experimental results, the attempts of interpretation at the present stage, and the conclusions of coupled investigations on semi-insulating, n-type and p-type vanadium-doped CdTe crystals. Combining electron paramagnetic resonance and magnetic circular dichroism permits the monitoring and the quantitative assessment of [V2+] and [V3+] defect concentrations. Photoabsorption results are presented and are discussed in terms of photoionization processes at various wavelengths. The temperature and the spectral dependence of the steady-state photoconductivity are carefully studied in the near infrared. The results are discussed in terms of electronic transitions for the two vanadium charge states. Finally, the photorefractive performances of the semi-insulating sample are analyzed in a two-beam-coupling experiment and are correlated to the properties of the V2+/V3+ donor states to derive photoionization cross sections. (C) 1996 Optical Society of America.