Erbium is a lanthanide series rare-earth element (atomic number 68) characterized by a [Xe]4f¹²6s² electron configuration and prominent 4f–4f optical transitions that yield narrow emission lines, especially in the near-infrared region around 1.5 µm. In materials science and photonics, erbium is widely used as a dopant in glass and crystals to create erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) and solid-state lasers, exploiting its metastable energy levels for efficient stimulated emission. Its paramagnetic 4f electrons also make erbium relevant in studies of magnetic ordering, crystal-field effects, and spectroscopic probes of local electronic structure in solid-state systems.
Recently, a research team from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences successfully grew a high-entropy garnet-structured oxide crystal and achieved enhanced laser performance at the 2.8 ...
Optics & Photonics
Feb 5, 2026
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A team led by Francesca Ferlaino has set a new milestone in atomic physics by trapping individual erbium atoms in optical tweezers for the first time. Taking advantage of erbium's complex electronic structure, which opens ...
Optics & Photonics
Nov 27, 2024
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Lasers have revolutionized the world since the 60s and are now indispensable in modern applications, from cutting-edge surgery and precise manufacturing to data transmission across optical fibers.
Optics & Photonics
Jun 10, 2024
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Efficient detection of single optical centers is crucial for applications in quantum computing, sensing, and single-photon generation. For example, nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond have made breakthroughs in high-precision ...
Optics & Photonics
May 9, 2024
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Qubits are the building block for quantum technology, and finding or building qubits that are stable and easily manipulated is one of the central goals of quantum technology research. Scientists have found that an atom of ...
Condensed Matter
Feb 8, 2024
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Saturable absorbers as passive modulators in passively mode-locked fiber lasers play a crucial role in the generation of ultrashort pulses. Germanene, a graphene-like two-dimensional material with fast carrier relaxation ...
Nanophysics
Jul 21, 2023
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