Giant lasing effect in magnetic point contacts and its detection by DC electrical measurements

We propose a new principle for a compact solid-state laser in 1-100 THz regime based on a new mechanism for creating spin-flip processes in ferromagnetic conductors. On the base of this mechanism, a giant lasing effect is predicted. The optical gain is estimated to exceed the optical gain of conventional semiconductor lasers by 4 or 5 orders of magnitude. We propose to use a point contact between ferromagnetic metals in order to create an inverted spin-population of hot electrons in the contact region. While point contact spectroscopy is an established technology the use of magnetic point contacts as a photon source is a new and potentially very useful application. We show that the generated photons conveniently can be detected by measuring the current through the illuminated point contact. © 2011 SPIE.