Theoretical investigation of the inverse Faraday effect via a stimulated Raman scattering process

We study theoretically the origin and mechanism of the ultrafast inverse Faraday effect, which is a magneto-optical effect, attracting much interest nowadays. Laser-induced subpicosecond spin dynamics in hydrogenlike systems and isolated many-electron atoms are investigated in order to get insight into this process. We show that the stimulated Raman scattering process leads to a change of the magnetic state of a system. We obtain the time evolution of the induced magnetization, its dependencies on laser properties, and the connection with the spin-orbit coupling of a system.