AbstractA successful observation and analysis of the Zeeman effect on the near 1.54 μm photoluminescence spectrum in Er-doped crystalline MBE-grown silicon are reported. A clearly resolved splitting of 5 major spectral components was observed in magnetic fields up to 5.5 T. Based on the analysis of the data the symmetry of the dominant optically active center was conclusively established as orthorhombic I (C2v), with g‼≈18.4 and g⊥≈0 in the ground state. The fact that g⊥≈0 explains why EPR detection of Er-related optically active centers in silicon may be difficult. Preferential generation of a single type of an optically active Er-related center in MBE growth confirmed in this study is essential for photonic applications of Si:Er.
