Nano-structuring impurity-doped crystals affects the phonon density of states and thereby modifies the atomic dynamics induced by interaction with phonons. We propose the use of nano-structured materials in the form of powders or phononic bandgap crystals to enable or improve persistent spectral hole burning and coherence for inhomogeneously broadened absorption lines in rare-earth-ion-doped crystals. This is crucial for applications such as ultra-precise radio-frequency spectrum analyzers and optical quantum memories. As an example, we discuss how phonon engineering can enable spectral hole burning in erbium-doped materials operating in the convenient telecommunication band and present simulations for density of states of nano-sized powders and phononic crystals for the case of ${\mathrm{Y}}_2{\mathrm{SiO}}_5$, a widely used material in current quantum memory research.

• Received 10 April 2015

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.94.013801