Long-standing Optically-excited Magnetic States in ZnO Nanoparticles

Overview & Synopsis

The spectral dependence of the light-induced magnetic states generated in zinc oxide nanoparticles by illumination during an electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) experiment is studied for three incident light wave lengths (451, 405 and 370 nm). The minimal wavelength excitation is found to be in the visible violet region, very close to 405 nm for all of the light-induced EPR lines. This points to a close relationship between their originating centers, despite the difference in their dynamics previously revealed by saturation recovery measurements. The study of the light-induced signals decay with time (after illumination removal) and with temperature (un-der constant illumination) confirms the existence of two groups of lines characterized by different dynamics. The quite unusual persistence of these magnetic states after excitation removal opens promising possibilities for encoding information within semiconducting nanoparticles.