Measurement of the Lifetime and of the Spin-Relaxation Time of Electrons in Semiconductors by the Optical-Orientation Method

It was shown recently [1, 2] that in semiconducting crystals it is possible to attain an appreciable orientation of the spins of the non-equilibrium carriers as a result of interband transitions caused by absorption of polarized light. Observation of optical orientation makes it possible to extend to semiconductors the research methods widely used in atomic spectroscopy [3], and particularly to investigate relaxation processes in a crystal under stationary conditions.