Rare-earth ions in the solid state are a prime candidate for quantum memory and other quantum information applications, due to their strongly shielded optical transitions. These same optical transitions allow for direct optical manipulation of nuclear-spin transitions. This is of interest for studying interactions in solids, as well as for long-term storage of light in quantum memory applications. In this talk I'll discuss experiments and early results to lengthen the coherence time of Europium nuclear spins when doped into the host Y2SiO5. We are on track to improve upon our group's earlier demonstration of seconds long light storage in Pr:Y2SiO5 by around 2 orders of magnitude.
Jadwin Hall Room 359