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The iddle o o ange– ed
luminescence in Bismu h‑doped
silica glasses
Oleksii V. Lagu a1* & Igo M. Razdob ee 2
Fo o e he pas wo decades i has been belie ed ha he in ense o ange‑ ed pho oluminescence
in Bismu h‑doped ma e ials o igina es om Bi
2+
ions. Based on he esul s om magne ic ci cula
pola iza ion expe imen s, we demons a e ha his hypo hesis ails o Bismu h‑doped silica
glasses. Ou indings con adic he gene ally accep ed s a emen ha he o ange‑ ed luminescence
a ises om
2
P3
/
2(1
)
→
2
P1
/2
ansi ion in a di alen Bismu h ion. The deg ee o magne ic ci cula
pola iza ion o his luminescence exhibi s non‑mono onic empe a u e and ield dependencies, as
well as sign e e sal. This complex beha iou canno be explained unde he assump ion o a single
Bi
2+
ion. The de ailed analysis enables us o cons uc a consis en diag am o ene gy le els in ol ed
in he magne o‑op ical expe imen s and p opose a new in e p e a ion o he na u e o o ange‑ ed
luminescence in Bismu h‑doped silica glass. A cen e esponsible o his no o ious pho oluminescence
mus be an e en‑elec on sys em wi h an in ege o al spin, p esumably a dime o Bismu h ions o a
complex consis ing o Bi
2+
and an oxygen acancy.
The o ange- ed pho oluminescence (ORPL) in Bismu h-doped ma e ials has been no ed since he wo k o Lecoq
de Boisbaud an1, who obse ed his luminescence in MSO
4
:Bi (M = Zn, Cd and Pb) sul a es which we e subjec ed
o he elec ical discha ge. Ne e heless, only a he end o he 20 h cen u y did Blasse e al.2,3 a ibu e he o igin
o his unusual ORPL in Bismu h-doped s on ium e abo a e S B
4
O
7
:Bi and some alkaline-ea h-me al sul a es
o a
2P3/2
→
2P1/2
ansi ion in a di alen Bismu h ion. In he ollowing yea s, a wide ange o Bi-doped ma e ials
exhibi ing he ORPL was syn hesized – ba ium bo a es4, phospha es5–7, luo ides8, ba i e9, g ossi e10. The main
eason o such inc eased in e es in hese ma e ials is he po en ial use o he ORPL o imp o e he e iciency
and colou empe a u e o whi e ligh -emi ing diodes11–14. No ably, he au ho s o he abo e-men ioned wo ks
assigned he o ange- ed pho oluminescence o a Bi
2+
ion based exclusi ely on he esemblance o he abso p ion/
emission spec a o hose obse ed by Blasse e al.2.
The elec onic con igu a ion o a Bi
2+
ion,
6s2
6
p1
, in p inciple, sugges s ha an EPR signal should be obse ed.
Howe e , e en a liquid helium empe a u e, he EPR signal could no be obse ed in any o he s udied com-
pounds. De Jong e al.15 ha e ecen ly e-examined he ORPL in S B
4
O
7
:Bi in o de o asce ain he eason why
he EPR signal is no obse ed. Acco ding o he au ho s, he e y low uppe limi o he Bi
2+
concen a ion,
which was es ima ed o be 20 ppm, is he main eason ha he EPR signal in his ma e ial canno be de ec ed. I
is wo h no ing, howe e , ha in hei analysis, i was a p io i pos ula ed ha Bi
2+
is esponsible o he ORPL.
In his ega d, i should be no ed ha a leas wo Bi-doped ungs a es, namely, CdWO
4
16 and PbWO
4
17, a e
known in which Bi
2+
ela ed EPR was in es iga ed. The EPR signal in hese single c ys als appea s only a e
i adia ion (X- ays, me cu y o xenon lamps) a low empe a u es (77 – 100 K) and i comple ely disappea s a
oom empe a u e. Un o una ely, bo h compounds exhibi in insic ORPL, which is obse ed in hese ma e i-
als unde exci a ion in he ange o 340 – 370 nm ( o PbWO
4
see, o ins ance e .18), while he appea ance o
new addi ional pho oluminescence (PL) o abso p ion bands di ec ly connec ed o Bi
2+
ions was no epo ed
and emains ques ionable.
Ano he class o ma e ials ha exhibi ORPL ela ed o Bismu h doping a e silica-based glasses. The in e es
in hese ma e ials a ose due o he disco e y o Bismu h- ela ed b oadband nea in a ed pho oluminescence
(NIR PL)19,20. Since silica-based glasses a e compa ible wi h mode n ib e op ic sys ems, emendous p og ess has
been made o e he pas 20 yea s in he de elopmen o bismu h-based ib e lase s and ampli ie s21–31. Ne e he-
less, despi e his echnological p og ess, he na u e o NIR PL and lasing cen es con inues o be discussed32–34.
OPEN
1Cen al Eu opean Ins i u e o Technology, CEITEC BUT, Pu kyňo a 656/123, 61200 B no, Czech Republic. 2UMR
8523 - PHLAM - Physique des Lase s A omes e Molécules, CERLA, Uni . Lille, CNRS, 59000 Lille, F ance. *email:
oleksii.lagu a@cei ec. u b .cz
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The in ense ORPL obse ed unde UV o blue-g een exci a ion is also one o he in iguing ea u es o
Bismu h-doped ib es. This PL was demons a ed o he i s ime in bulk sin e ed ib e p e o ms ab ica ed
om nano-po ous xe ogels35. La e , his luminescence was a ibu ed o a single Bi
2+
ion by analogy wi h he
wo k o Blasse e al.2 and a p esen , o he bes o ou knowledge, his is a gene ally accep ed in e p e a ion28,36–38.
The ORPL in Bi-doped silica glasses is obse ed a e high- empe a u e sin e ing o he po ous hos ma ix
o a e he mel ing o aw compounds, and i s eco ding does no equi e any i adia ion. A he same ime,
all ou a emp s o de ec he EPR signal a e i adia ion a low empe a u es (down o 5 K) had ailed. Fo
his eason, he iden i ica ion o ORPL in Bismu h-doped silica glass as a ansi ion
2P3/2
→
2P1/2
in a di alen
Bismu h ion was doub ul.
In ou ecen pape 39, we in es iga ed he magne ic ci cula dich oism (MCD) in bulk ib e p e o ms SiO
2
:Bi,
in which bo h cen es, ORPL and NIR PL (lasing cen e), coexis . I was shown ha he eco ded MCD bands,
mos p obably, should be assigned o he ORPL ela ed cen e. Fu he mo e, he MCD beha iou as a unc ion o
magne ic ield and empe a u e can be explained only by assuming he e en-elec on na u e o a single emi ing
cen e. Thus, he la e canno be iden i ied as a Bi
2+
ion. Un o una ely, e en a e y low doping le els Bismu h-
doped glasses a e always cha ac e ized by he mul iplici y o op ical cen es and he unambiguous co espondence
be ween he abso p ion and emission bands is no ob ious. Fo his eason, in he p esen pape , we epo on
he measu emen s o magne ic ci cula pola iza ion o luminescence (MCPL) in bulk Bismu h-doped silica glass.
MCPL di ec ly cha ac e izes he magne ic p ope ies o he exci ed s a es and o e s such ad an ages o e he
s anda d EPR as high sensi i i y and selec i i y. In con as o ou ea lie s udy40, in which we in es iga ed he
NIR PL o he lasing cen e, he e we analyse he ORPL and accompanying PL in he egion o 850 nm. The esul s
o he p esen wo k cons i u e di ec and unequi ocal e idence ha he ORPL in Bi-doped silica glass canno be
iden i ied as a
2P3/2
→
2P1/2
ansi ion in a Bi
2+
ion. Also, based on he esul s ob ained om MCPL and MCD
expe imen s, we ha e cons uc ed a consis en ene gy le el diag am o he ORPL cen e and discuss i s na u e.
Resul s
Pho oluminescence and exci a ion spec a. In Fig.1 we show he PL spec a eco ded in he ange o
460 – 900 nm unde exci a ion a 450 and 532 nm. The spec a we e eco ded a wo empe a u es: 1.47 and 13
K. Al hough all he spec a shown in Fig.1 we e eco ded in a magne ic ield o 6T, we did no e eal any ield
dependence o he PL spec um. I is seen ha he PL spec um a bo h exci a ion WLs consis s o he in ense
ORPL band accompanied by a long-wa eleng h ail. The s ong exci a ion wa eleng h dependence o he ORPL
is due o i s non-homogeneous b oadening. The maximum in ensi y o he ORPL band is a 585 and 650 nm,
while i s ull wid h a hal maximum is app oxima ely 3000 and 2600 cm
−1
unde exci a ion a 450 and 532 nm,
espec i ely. The change o empe a u e only sligh ly a ec s he shape and posi ion o he ORPL, being wi hin he
expe imen al accu acy. I is e y impo an o no e ha unde exci a ion a 532 nm a ela i ely weak and b oad
PL band NIR1 wi h he maximum a ound 850 nm accompanies he ORPL. As i will be shown below, his NIR1
and he ORPL bands belong o he same luminescen cen e. Like he ORPL band, he NIR1 band also exhibi s
s ong non-homogeneous b oadening. The addi ional ela i ely na ow band NIR2 a 830 nm, which is obse ed
unde exci a ion a 450 nm, belongs o he lasing cen e and should be assigned o he
2−→ 1+
ansi ion
in a Bi
+
ion, which has been discussed by us p e iously34.
Such an assignmen is also suppo ed by he measu emen s o exci a ion spec a shown in Fig.2. I is seen
in Fig.2a ha he exci a ion spec a eco ded a 580 and 830 nm a e e y di e en . The exci a ion spec um
o he ORPL band eco ded a 580 nm shows wo well-sepa a ed peaks (P1 and P4). The spec um eco ded a
5
4
3
2
1
0
In ensi y (cps, x10
4
)
900
800700600500
Wa eleng h (nm)
T = 1.47 K
λ
exc
= 450 nm
λ
exc
= 532 nm
T = 13 K
λ
exc
= 450 nm
λ
exc
= 532 nm
ORPL
NIR1
NIR2 (Bi
+
)
Figu e1. Pho oluminescence spec a o SiO
2
:Bi a di e en exci a ion wa eleng hs and empe a u es in he
magne ic ield 6 T.
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830 nm consis s o wo s ong peaks (labelled P2 and P3) which a e caused by he ansi ions
1+−→ 3+
(P2) and
1+−→ 3
(P3) in Bi
+
34. The sho - and long-wa eleng h ails, hough, seem o coincide wi h P1
and P4 peaks o he ORPL spec um, and a e due o he o e lapping o NIR2 and NIR1 luminescence. Finally,
he exci a ion spec um eco ded a 855 nm shown in Fig.2b can be conside ed as a weigh ed sum o he wo
p e ious spec a. I s shape is again due o he o e lapping o he luminescence spec a o wo di e en cen es:
he Bi
+
ion and he cen e unde he ques ion esponsible o he ORPL. Howe e , a 855 nm he ela i e PL
in ensi ies o hese cen es a e compa able because in Bi
+
a his pa icula wa eleng h he ac i e ansi ion is
2+−→ 1+
, which is much weake han he
2−→ 1+
ansi ion a 830 nm (see Fig.1 and Table1 in
Re .34). The p esence o he addi ional spec al band NIR1, which belongs o he ORPL cen e, becomes e en
mo e ob ious when s udying he MCPL.
Magne ic ci cula pola iza ion o luminescence. In Fig.3a,b we show he MCPL spec a (
I+−I−
)
along wi h spec a o he o al in ensi y (
(I++I−)/2
) eco ded in a magne ic ield o 6 T a wo empe a u es:
1.47 and 13 K. The mos no iceable ea u e is he di e en sign o ci cula pola iza ion in he ORPL band a
hese empe a u es; namely, i is nega i e a he lowe empe a u e and posi i e a he highe . Addi ionally, a he
lowe empe a u e he peak o MCPL is blue-shi ed ela i e o he PL band o bo h exci a ion WLs. This shi
becomes impe cep ible a T = 13 K. I is also seen ha he MCPL in he long-wa eleng h ail o ORPL is nega i e
a bo h empe a u es and i does no co ela e wi h he na ow PL band obse ed a 830 nm. I ollows ha his
b oad PL should be a ibu ed o a sepa a e band, which is no ela ed o he luminescence o Bi
+
ions, and, on
he con a y, belongs o he ORPL cen e.
In he s udy o MCPL, he mos use ul quan i y is he so-called emission aniso opy ac o o he deg ee o
ci cula pola iza ion (DCP), which is de ined as
DCP =(I+−I−)/(I++I−)
41,42. Simila ly o MCD, his quan-
i y can be p esen ed as a sum o h ee e ms:
A
,
B
and
C
. Fo he simples model o an isola ed Gaussian band,
only he
A
- e m exhibi s a spec al dependence:
A∼ (ν −ν
0
)
. Then, he obse ed DCP spec um, as a ule,
akes he o m o an inclined (
A = 0
) o a ho izon al (
A=0
) s aigh line41. A e y use ul p ope y o he
A
- e m is ha i akes ze o alue a he maximum in ensi y o he PL band43. In he as majo i y o cases,
A
- and
B
- e ms a e empe a u e independen ; he e o e, measu emen s o DCP a he maximum PL band in ensi y allow
he di ec s udy o he pa amagne ic e m
C
. The expe imen al spec a o DCP eco ded in he magne ic ield o
6 T a he exci a ion WLs 450 and 532 nm, a e shown in Fig.3c,d, espec i ely. I is seen ha a he low empe a-
u e he DCP spec um o he main ORPL band can be well app oxima ed by a single inclined s aigh line. The
pa ame e s ha co espond o he pa amagne ic
C
and diamagne ic
A
e ms ob ained om he i a e as ollows:
a)
C=−
5.99
(
1
)×
10
−2
and
A=−
8.74
(
1
)×
10
−6
, and b)
C=−
7.52
(
2
)×
10
−2
and
A=−
1.14
(
1
)×
10
−5
o he abo e exci a ion WLs, espec i ely. A a empe a u e o 13 K, he pa amagne ic e ms become posi i e and
a e e y close o bo h exci a ion WLs:
C=
3.5
(
1
)×
10
−2
, while he
A
- e m becomes negligible. This s ange
beha iou o he
A
- e m (by he de ini ion i is empe a u e insensi i e) can appea only i he MCPL o igina es
om wo o mo e magne ic mul iple s, and i is well explained in ou model p esen ed in he nex sec ion. The e
is ano he impo an ea u e o he obse ed DCP ha mus be poin ed ou . I is seen ha he long-wa eleng h
ail o luminescence always exhibi s nega i e DCP. The sha p peak, which can be seen in Fig.3c a 12050 cm
−1
(830 nm), can be also obse ed unde exci a ion a 375 nm, whe e PL, and consequen ly posi i e DCP, om
Figu e2. Exci a ion spec a. (a) PL exci a ion spec a o he ORPL and NIR2 bands. (b) PL exci a ion spec um
o he NIR1 band eco ded a 855 nm and i s mul i-peak decon olu ion. All he spec a we e eco ded a 1.47 K
and ze o magne ic ield.
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Bi
+
ions become dominan 40. This peak is absen in he DCP spec um eco ded a
exc
= 532 nm (panel (d) o
Fig.3), while he nega i e DCP in his spec al egion p ac ically ep oduces ha in panel (c) o Fig.3. Thus, he
measu emen s o MCPL con i m ha he PL NIR2 is due o Bi
+
ions and i appea s due o he pa ial o e lap o
i s exci a ion spec um and ha o ORPL, as i was poin ed ou p e iously in his wo k.
Fu he de ailed in es iga ions o he MCPL in he ORPL band a a a iable empe a u e and magne ic ield
(VTVH) we e pe o med a 650 and 585 nm, co esponding o he maximums o ORPL a he lowes empe a u e
unde exci a ion a 532 and 450 nm, espec i ely. The expe imen al da a on VTVH-MCPL ob ained a 585 nm
VTVH-MCPL a e shown in Fig.4a,b. In he le (a) panel he da a a e p esen ed so as o show he empe a u e
dependence a a ixed magne ic ield. On he con a y, in he igh panel Fig.4b, he da a is shown as a unc ion
o he magne ic ield a a ixed empe a u e.
I is seen ha a any ixed alue o he magne ic ield, DCP beha iou is non-mono onic. The deg ee o
ci cula pola iza ion inc eases wi h he empe a u e dec ease and eaches i s maximum alue
DCP =+0.047
a T
≈
10 K in he magne ic ield o 6 T. Then, he DCP dec eases, changes i s sign in he icini y o
T=6
K,
and sa u a es. Ano he in e es ing de ail is ha he MCPL sa u a es o di e en alues o each magne ic ield
magni ude. This is a dis inguishing ea u e o an e en-elec on sys em40,44. Sa u a ion cu es eco ded a 650
nm unde exci a ion a 532 nm exhibi a a he simila empe a u e beha iou , and can be ound in Fig.S1 o
he Supplemen a y Ma e ials.
We also pe o med VTVH measu emen s o DCP a he wa eleng h o 850 nm upon exci a ion a 532 nm o
make only he ORPL cen e ac i e. As i is shown in Fig.4c, he DCP exhibi s a simple mono onic empe a u e
dependence a any magne ic ield. The pola iza ion deg ee inc eases wi h empe a u e and sa u a es below 5 K.
Simila ly o he ORPL band, he alue o he sa u a ion pa ame e inc eases wi h he inc easing magne ic ield.
In Fig.4d we show he magne ic ield dependences a ixed empe a u es. I is seen ha he magne iza ion cu es
exhibi he nes ed (o an-ou ) beha iou cha ac e is ic o a ze o- ield spli pa amagne ic ini ial s a e. Thus, bo h
ep esen a ions o DCP beha iou shown in Fig.4c,d di ec ly indica e he e en-elec on sys em na u e o he
ORPL cen e, whe eas Bi
2+
has only one unpai ed elec on.
When analysing MCPL measu ed in he expe imen s wi h con inuous wa e (CW) exci a ion, he spin elaxa-
ion p ocess mus be aken in o accoun . I is c ucial ha he popula ion dis ibu ion eaches i s he modynamic
Figu e3. Compa ison o MCPL (
I+−I−
) and o al in ensi y spec a eco ded upon exci a ion a 450 and 532
nm ( (a) s (b) and (c) s (d)). Compa ison o DCP
(
I
+
−I
−)/(
I
+
+I
−)
spec a eco ded a empe a u es o
1.47 and 13 K. Magne ic ield is 6 T in all panels. Ve ical dash-do lines indica e he band maximum posi ion.
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equilib ium be o e he elec ons elax om he exci ed s a e. This means ha he spin-la ice elaxa ion ime mus
be much sho e han he adia i e decay ime. I his condi ion is no sa is ied, he ob ained alues o g- ac o
and ZFS will be inco ec . To ensu e ha in ou expe imen s he abo e-men ioned condi ion is sa is ied, we
pe o med he measu emen s o ime- esol ed DCP45. In his echnique, one eco ds sepa a ely he ime- esol ed
decays o
σ+
and
σ
−
componen s o pho oluminescence. Then he subsequen sub ac ion and no maliza ion
allow he ob ainmen o he ime e olu ion o DCP. Howe e , expe imen s wi h nanosecond ime esolu ion did
no allow us o obse e he ini ial build-up o DCP a e pulsed exci a ion, as i is shown in Fig.S2. In all ou
expe imen s DCP eached i s equilib ium alue ins an ly. This indica es a e y as spin elaxa ion, mos p obably
a he picosecond scale, so ha i does no in luence he esul s o CW DCP measu emen s.
MCPL analysis and ene gy le el diag am. The unusual beha iou o DCP desc ibed abo e could be
explained wi h he assump ion ha he e a e wo independen e en-elec on cen es, each o which con ib-
u es o luminescence. Howe e , ou ea lie esul s on magne ic ci cula dich oism con adic his assump ion39.
Ano he possibili y is o assume ha he e is only one kind o luminescen cen e, in which case he ORPL is
caused by he simul aneous ansi ions om a leas wo closely spaced exci ed s a es (o sub-s a es). The MCPL
due o hese exci ed s a es is opposi e in sign and, in addi ion, he absolu e alues o hei ze o- ield spli ing
(ZFS) mus be signi ican ly di e en .
In Fig.5 we show he ene gy le el diag am o he ORPL cen e, which sa is ies all he obse ed MCPL ea u es.
Figu e5a gi es a gene al ou line o le els. Due o he s ong inhomogeneous b oadening, bo h s a es
|2�
o
|3�
can be exci ed simul aneously, bu in he cen es om di e en sub-se s. A e he exci a ion, which is ollowed
by as non- adia i e elaxa ion, he ORPL a ises as a ansi ion om hese s a es o he g ound s a e
|0�
, while
he PL band a ound 850 nm a ises due o he ansi ion om he s a e
|3�
o an in e media e s a e
|1�
. Ob iously,
Figu e4. DCP da a eco ded a 585 and 850 nm upon exci a ion a 450 and 532 nm, espec i ely. (a) Da a a e
shown as a unc ion o empe a u e a ixed magne ic ields. Black do ma ke s— expe imen al da a, ainbow-
colou ed su ace— heo e ical DCP calcula ed using pa ame e s om he da a i o Eq.(1) wi h
i=2
. The ed
colou plane indica es he ze o pola iza ion le el. b) Magne ic ield dependence o DCP a ixed empe a u es.
(c) Da a eco ded a 850 nm a e shown as a unc ion o empe a u e a ixed magne ic ields. Ma ke s—
expe imen al da a, lines— heo e ical DCP calcula ed om he da a i o Eq.(1) wi h
i=1
. (d) DCP da a
shown as a unc ion o magne ic ield a ixed empe a u es.

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i he ene gy ba ie s E
23
and E
32
be ween he s a es
|2�
and
|3�
a e su icien ly high (E
23
, E
32
≫1/kT
), hen he
DCP measu ed in he ORPL band can be ep esen ed as a sum o indi idual con ibu ions.
Assuming ha he MCPL is caused only by xy-pola ized elec ic dipole ansi ions, and
g�≫g⊥
, he pa a-
magne ic
C
- e m o DCP is40:
whe e he summa ion is o e all he ansi ions om di e en exci ed s a es con ibu ing a he gi en WL,
n=cos(θ)
, A
sa
i
a e he sa u a ion cons an s,
i
a e he co esponding ZFS’s be ween wo magne ic sub-le els due
o he low symme y componen o he c ys al ield,
˜gi
a e he e ec i e g- ac o s, which, o example, a e equal
o
4g,i
o
2g,i
o a spin quin e (
S=2
) and a spin iple (
S=1
), espec i ely. This exp ession is alid o any
se o s ongly aniso opic and non-in e ac ing ( e m
B=0
) double s, K ame s o non-K ame s. I some pa -
icula ansi ion in ol es hal -in ege spin s a es, hen he co esponding ZFS ene gy
i
igo ously equals ze o.
The wo-dimensional i o he expe imen al da a se DCP(T,B) o he Eq. (1) is shown in Fig.4a o WL 585
nm. I can be seen ha ou simpli ied model simula es he empe a u e and magne ic ield dependences eason-
ably well, hough, i can be u he imp o ed by aking in o accoun possible ansi ions be ween s a es
|2�
and
|3�
.
The pa ame e s o spin Hamil onian o he co esponding exci ed s a es a e gi en in Table1, which, o he sake
o comple eness, is supplemen ed by he esul s ob ained om he MCD measu emen s (ORPL cen e) and MCPL
in he lasing cen e (p esumably, Bi
+
ion)34,39,40. I is wo h no ing, ha wi h he ZFS pa ame e ixed o ze o, i
was impossible o ge any sa is ac o y i . This allows us o make he unequi ocal conclusion ha a single Bi
2+
ion o , as a ma e o ac , any o he sys em wi h a hal -in ege spin canno cause his o ange– ed luminescence.
The igh panel in Fig.5 shows he ine s uc u e o ene gy le els. This model depic s he simples case wi h he
iple g ound and second exci ed s a es since nei he MCD no MCPL gi es he exac alue o he e ec i e spin
S. One can see ha he nega i e MCPL componen o igina es om he exci ed s a e wi h he ZFS
=4.5
cm
−1
,
while he posi i e one om he s a e wi h
=21
cm
−1
. The e ec i e
˜g
- ac o o he exci ed s a e wi h a high
ZFS (see Table1) is small and i has a la ge i unce ain y. This is no su p ising, since he main con ibu ion o
(1)
C
(T,B)=
N
�
i=1
Asa
i�1
0
˜giµBBn4
�
�2
i+(˜giµBBn)2
anh 
�
�2
i+(˜giµBBn)2
2kT 
dn,
Figu e5. Ene gy le els diag am o he ORPL cen e in SiO
2
:Bi. (a) Gene al layou . Wa y a ows co espond
o as non- adia i e elaxa ion. Dashed a ow: possible, bu unobse ed ye ansi ion. (b) Magne ic suble el
s uc u e. All suble els a e labelled by he quan um numbe s
MS
co esponding o he quan ized p ojec ions o
he spin S.
Table 1. Ze o ield spli ings (ZFS), sa u a ion cons an s and e ec i e
˜g
- ac o s o ORPL and NIR PL (Bi
+
ion) cen es in SiO
2
:Bi glass. The exci a ion WL o he MCPL is gi en in pa en heses.
Bi
+
ORPL cen e
Asa
˜g
ZFS (

)
Wa eleng h, nm Wa eleng h, nm cm
−1
MCD – 465
(
2.8 ±0.03
)
×10
−3
2.16 ±0.04
1.22 ±0.11
MCPL
580 (450)
−1.8 ±0.3
1.4 ±0.16
5.1 ±0.4
11 ±0.6
0.44 ±6
17 ±2
640 (532)
−1.4 ±0.2
1.28 ±0.14
4.5 ±0.3
7.6 ±0.5
0.56 ±8
21 ±2.5
850 (532)
−7.6 ±0.8
0.86 ±2
21 ±3
830 (375)
1.26 ±0.08
1.4 ±10
97 ±6
1440 (375)
−1.38 ±0.06
4.28 ±0.17
6.18 ±0.24
7
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he spli ing o double sub-le els is due o ZFS, while he Zeeman e m in he a ailable ange o magne ic ields
is no su icien ly la ge o he p ecise g- ac o de e mina ion. I is also shown in Table1 ha he se o pa am-
e e s ob ained om he DCP da a o NIR1 band (850 nm) is p ac ically iden ical o ha o he posi i e DCP
componen o ORPL. This is e y s ong e idence ha hese ansi ions ha e he same ini ial exci ed sub-s a e
and di e en e mina ing s a es esul ing in opposi e DCP signs. Acco ding o he model o Fig.5b, he NIR1
band is caused only by he ansi ion om he s a e
|3�
o he i s (in e media e) exci ed s a e
|1�
. The subsequen
ansi ion om
|1�
o he g ound s a e, i i exis s, should p oduce NIR luminescence beyond 2
µ
m, and pe haps
his is he eason why i has no been epo ed so a .
The p oposed ene gy le els diag am nicely explains he obse ed ze oing o he
A
- e m a 13 K in he ORPL
band. We ecall ha he A- e m is empe a u e independen acco ding o he s anda d heo y41–44. Fo his eason,
we belie e ha he obse ed
A
- e m should be conside ed as a pseudo
A
- e m, he appea ance o which is associ-
a ed wi h wo o e lapping
C
- e ms o opposi e signs46. Fi s , acco ding o Fig.5b, only he ansi ion
|2�−→|0�
p oduces a genuine
A
- e m as a esul o he g ound s a e spli ing. Howe e , due o he ela i ely small alue
o his spli ing,
W
, on he one hand, and he la ge wid h o he luminescence band,
�ν
, on he o he hand,
we would expec he diamagne ic e m o be negligibly small e en a high magne ic ields since
A≃�W/�ν
.
Second, in ou model, he s a es
|2�
and
|3�
ha e he same exci a ion p obabili ies, meaning ha hey a e equally
popula ed a low empe a u es, and he ansi ions o he g ound s a e a e o compa able in ensi ies. Howe e ,
he absolu e deg ee o pola iza ion is highe o emission om he s a e wi h a small ZFS, i. e. s a e
|2�
. This is
because he DCP is in e sely p opo ional o he ze o- ield spli ing

a low and in e media e magne ic ields
(
˜gµBB≤�
). As he esul , he DCP is nega i e and has a non-ze o slope a 1.47 K. As he empe a u e ises, he
C
- e m o s a e
|2�
dec eases as e han ha o s a e
|3�
, educing he pseudo
A
- e m. Addi ionally, he possible
elaxa ion
|2�−→|3�
o e he ba ie E
23
con ibu es o he edis ibu ion o he exci ed s a es’ popula ions in
a ou o he ansi ion
|3�−→|0�
. This p ocess can also dec ease he con ibu ion o he s a e
|2�
o he DCP,
which leads o ze oing o he pseudo
A
- e m.
Acco ding o he selec ion ules, he sign o MCPL is de ined by he change o he magne ic momen ’s p o-
jec ion
µz=−µBgMS
du ing he ansi ion be ween he ene gy le els. Since in ou model he inal s a e is he
same and has he ze o p ojec ion (
MS=0
), he wo componen s o MCPL can ha e he opposi e signs only
i he co esponding exci ed s a es ha e he opposi e momen s
µz
. Consequen ly, he nega i e MCPL, e.g. he
le -hand pola ized componen
σ
−
, o igina es om he s a e wi h a posi i e
µz
, and he
σ+
componen om
he s a e wi h a nega i e
µz
. In e ms o he spin Hamil onian i means ha he non-K ame s double
|±1�
o he
s a e
|3�
has a nega i e g- ac o .
The appea ance o a nega i e g- ac o is possible in a sys em wi h la ge spin S and in e ac ions ha in oduce
non-diagonal e ms o he spin Hamil onian. A simple example is a Yb
3+
ion in he oc ahed al en i onmen 47.
Chibo a u and Ungu 48 discussed possible mechanisms o nega i e g- ac o s in lan hanide and ansi ion me al
complexes. They concluded ha he necessa y condi ion o a nega i e g- ac o is he p esence o s ong ou h-
and highe -o de pe u ba ions, namely he ZFS e ec s and/o s ong spin-o bi coupling. Re u ning o Bi
2+
,
i indeed exhibi s a e y s ong spin-o bi in e ac ion, which spli s he
2
P e m o he 6p elec on o he g ound
s a e
2
P
1/2
and he i s exci ed s a e
2
P
3/2
. Howe e , he ou h- and highe -o de pe u ba ion e ec s do no
a ise o he s a es o qua e and lowe mul iplici y47,49. This is ye ano he ac excluding Bi
2+
as he o igin o
he ORPL in Bismu h-doped silica glass.
Ano he class o sys ems ha can demons a e a nega i e g- ac o is clus e s o ions. The exchange coupling
mixes he s a es o indi idual ions p oducing simila e ec s as high-o de spin-o bi and c ys al ield in e ac ions.
Piligkos e al.50 in es iga ed ansi ion me al dime s wi h a weak exchange coupling using MCD spec oscopy.
Among di e en model sys ems hey obse ed a e e se o he MCD signal sign in an an i e omagne ically
coupled C (III)Ni(II) dime a he empe a u es abo e
≃
15 K. The g ound s a e o he sys em consis s o h ee
sub-le els wi h he lowes spin s a e S
=
1/2. The o he wo spin s a es o he sys em, S
=
3/2 and S
=
5/2, lie a
20.1 and 53.6 cm
−1
abo e he lowes one, espec i ely. Magne ic momen s o he exci ed s a es a e opposi e o
he magne ic momen o he S
=
1/2 g ound double . Abo e 15 K he popula ion o exci ed s a es becomes su -
icien ly high o p oduce a majo con ibu ion o MCD, which e e ses i s sign.
Taking in o accoun he abo e conside a ions, i should be clea ha he o ange– ed luminescence can no
be assigned o a single Bi
2+
ion. This ac i e cen e mus ha e a mo e complex elec onic s uc u e. The simples
objec s ha could sa is y he ea u es obse ed in he MCD and MCPL expe imen s a e, o example, homo-
nuclea dime s. I is wo h ecalling he e ha Bismu h ions a e cha ac e ized by ex ended ou e p-o bi als, which
enhances a endency o clus e ing. On his basis, i can be assumed ha di alen Bismu h ions compose a dime
[Bi
2+
— Bi
2+
] ha is esponsible o he o ange– ed pho oluminescence. Al e na i ely, one can assume ha some
kind o a s able complex o med by a Bi
2+
ion and an oxygen acancy ([Bi – V
O
]
n+
) is he o igin o he ORPL.
Un o una ely, MCPL is no capable o dis inguishing hese wo cases. As a solu ion, he op ically de ec ed nuclea
magne ic esonance can be used. This echnique can p o ide he same in o ma ion as he con en ional NMR bu
i is mo e selec able since i p obes he nuclei o he luminescence cen e only51,52. On he o he hand, ORPL is
obse ed e en a e y low doping le els o Bismu h (
∼
1 ppm) a which o ming o dime s is qui e imp obable,
and he e o e he second assump ion seems o be mo e ealis ic.
Discussion and conclusions
De ailed in es iga ions o magne ic ci cula pola iza ion o he o ange– ed pho oluminescence band in Bis-
mu h-doped silica glass wi hou o he co-dopan s we e pe o med a a iable empe a u e and magne ic ield.
The expe imen s show a he complex beha iou o he deg ee o ci cula pola iza ion, which exhibi s a non-
mono onic empe a u e and ield dependence, and sign e e sal. Such beha iou canno be explained by he
gene ally accep ed assump ion o Bi
2+
being he o igin o he ORPL. The analysis o VTVH cu es e ealed
8
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ha he exci ed s a es o he ORPL cen e a e magne ic mul iple s wi h la ge ze o- ield spli ing. We p oposed a
consis en model o ene gy le els o he ORPL cen e, which explains all he peculia i ies obse ed in MCPL and
MCD expe imen s. We assume ha he sou ce o his he mally s able o ange– ed pho oluminescence can be
homonuclea Bismu h dime s ([Bi
2+
– Bi
2+
], o ins ance) o complexes consis ing o a Bi
2+
ion and an oxygen
acancy [Bi – V
O
]
n+
, and each o hese cen es mus be a sys em wi h an e en numbe o elec ons.
Me hods
Ma e ials. In he p esen in es iga ion, wo ypes o ma e ial we e used. The i s ype o he samples was
manu ac u ed using he mel ing o SiO
2
and Bi
2
O
3
powde s in silica ubes53. The size o pa icles was 100–200
and 1–5
µ
m o silica and bismu h oxide, espec i ely. The mass a io o he oxides was chosen so ha he a omic
a io Bi/Si ob ained in he glass was abou o 5000 ppm. The de ailed p ocedu e o sample ab ica ion was e y
close o ha desc ibed p e iously by I. Bu e o e al.54.
The second ype o ma e ial used in ou expe imen was a Bismu h-doped silica glass p e o m manu ac u ed
om nano-po ous silica xe ogels. The xe ogels we e doped wi h bismu h by soaking in an ace one solu ion o
Bi-con aining p ecu so complex. A e he dehyd oxyla ion, he xe ogels we e sin e ed a 1300
◦
C in a helium
a mosphe e. A mo e de ailed desc ip ion o his ma e ial ab ica ion was epo ed elsewhe e35,55,56. The samples
p epa ed om his ma e ial we e he same ha we p e iously used in he MCD expe imen s39, and we ecall he e
ha he a omic a io Bi/Si es ima ed om he s anda d elec on p obe mic oanalysis (EPMA) was abou 400 ppm.
Bo h ypes o samples we e cu and polished o ge he dimensions o abou
2×4×5
mm
3
. The samples
showed e y simila esul s. We p esen ed he e he da a ob ained om he second ype o ma e ial only since i
was used in he MCD measu emen s epo ed be o e39.
Measu emen s. Expe imen s in he empe a u e ange 1.4–300 K we e pe o med in he closed cycle mag-
ne o-op ical c yos a (Spec omagPT, Ox o d Ins .). The he mal s abili y o he samples a ached o he holde
o he a iable empe a u e inse was abou 0.01 K, excep he ange om 4.2 o 10 K, whe e he he mal s abili y
was abou 0.05 K.
Lase diodes and equency doubled Nd:YAG lase s we e used o he exci a ion a di e en wa eleng hs.
In he expe imen s wi h con inuous wa e exci a ion he qua e -wa e e a da ion (
/4
) was in oduced by he
pho oelas ic modula o (I/FS-20, Hinds Ins umen s) a he equency 20.077 kHz. The esul ing PL emission
in he ange o 460–900 nm was analysed by he ixed uncoa ed Glan-Thompson pola ize , hen il e ed by a
monoch oma o and de ec ed wi h he cooled GaAs pho omul iplie (R943-02, Hamama su Inc.). The pho on
coun ing echnique (P7887 scale , Fas ComTec) was used o eco d he signal because o i s ou s anding signal
o noise a io. In he expe imen s wi h pulsed exci a ion he pho oelas ic modula o was eplaced wi h a supe -
ach oma ic
/4
wa epla e. O he equipmen and de ails o he expe imen s we e desc ibed elsewhe e40. The
spec al esolu ion in he in es iga ed WL ange was 1.5 nm.
Da a a ailabili y
Expe imen al da a shown in he g aphs h oughou his a icle a e a ailable om he co esponding au ho
upon easonable eques .
Recei ed: 27 Janua y 2021; Accep ed: 26 Ma ch 2021
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Acknowledgemen s
We hank H. El Hamzaoui and M. Bouazaoui o he syn hesis o nano-po ous silica xe ogels and sample p epa-
a ion, V. B. A ion o he syn hesis o Bismu h p ecu so s. We also wan o hank P o . M. Baye and P o .
D. Yako le om Technische Uni e si ä Do mund (Ge many) o he oppo uni y o conduc compa a i e
measu emen s in hei labo a o y. This wo k has been suppo ed by “Agence Na ionale de la Reche che” ia
ANR g an “BOATS” 12BS04-0019-01. OL is suppo ed by he Eu opean Social Fund unde he p ojec CZ.02.
2.69/0.0/0.0/19_074/0016239.
Au ho con ibu ions
Bo h au ho s con ibu ed equally o his wo k.