Giant Faraday rotation of blue light in epitaxial CexY3-xFe5O12 films grown by pulsed laser deposition

We report crystalline, magnetic, and magneto-optic (MO) properties of Ce-substituted yttrium iron garnet (CexY3-xFe5O12) thin films epitaxially grown onto single crystal Gd3Ga5O12 (111) substrates using Nd:YAG pulsed laser deposition technique. Oxygen ambient pressure used for the growth is found to be the critical parameter to prepare CexY3-xFe5O12 films with good crystalline and magnetic properties as well as large MO effect. The film fabricated at 50 m Torr oxygen pressure exhibits a maximum Faraday rotation (FR) theta (F)=1.78 and 4 degrees/mum at lambda =633 and 430 nm, respectively, a minimum in-plane coercivity H-c=35 Oe, and the narrowest full width at half maximum = 0.06 degrees for the (444) x-ray Bragg reflection rocking curve. The analog of the Verdet constant V=theta (F)/4 piM(s) also found to be dependent on the oxygen ambient pressure reaches a value as high as 1.41 degrees/mum kG at 633 nm, suggesting that this material is useful for MO applications. The energy dispersion FR spectra, measured over visible region 400 to 840 nm, clearly demonstrate that Ce substitution prominently enhances Faraday effect at 690 and at 430 nm blue-wavelength region. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.