Magnetic and optical anisotropy in garnets induced by spatially modulated elliptically polarized light

We consider the formation of the optical and magnetic anisotropy in non-mag netic at room temperature, and magnetic garnets induced by spatially modula ted elliptically polarized light. Experimentally, such conditions are reali zed by illuminating the sample with two linearly polarized coherent light b eams with mutually orthogonal polarization states during the recording of h olographic gratings. We develop a theoretical model by calculating the occu pancies' kinetics of anisotropic impurity centers, localized in different g arnet sublattices. This model is applied to the CaMnGe garnet and is compar ed with the experimental results, which are fairly well described. A conclu sion about the possibility to record magnetic gratings in the magnetic garn et YIG:Co. is drawn by calculating the spatial profile of the photoinduced magnetic anisotropy. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.