Er3+ Doped Y2o3 Transparent Ceramic For Quantum Memory Applications

We study transparent ceramics made of erbium doped yttria, as a candidate material for quantum storage of photons in the telecom wavelength. Samples with different heat processing conditions are compared. Two different species of Er3+ ions with drastically different dephasing properties are identified. In general, samples processed at lower temperature show narrower inhomogeneous and homogeneous linewidths. We also demonstrate both type I and type II waveguide in the material using a femtosecond laser, with propagation loss of 0.22 dB/mm.