Faraday rotator properties of {Tb3}[Sc1.95Lu0.05](Al3)O12, a highly transparent terbium-garnet for visible-infrared optical isolators

The optical and magneto-optical properties of the {Tb-3}[Sc1.95Lu0.05](Al-3)O-12 garnet (TSLAG) crystal are analyzed in detailed and compared with those of the reference compound Tb3Ga5O12 (TGG). TSLAG presents a very high transmittance, particularly higher than that of TGG in the visible region, and its Verdet constant is 20% larger at any wavelength. The figure of merit and extinction features point out the superior characteristics of TSLAG respect to TGG. A prototype, polarization independent optical isolator based on a TSLAG rotator is demonstrated at 1080 nm. Its performance confirms the high optical quality of this crystal, indicating its mature development for Faraday rotator applications. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3609245]