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In optics, the inverse Faraday effect is the effect opposite to the Faraday effect. A static magnetization M {\displaystyle \mathbf {M} } is induced by an external oscillating electrical field with the frequency ω {\displaystyle \omega } , which can be achieved with a high intensity laser pulse for example. The induced magnetization is proportional to the vector product of E {\displaystyle \mathbf {E} } and E ∗ {\displaystyle \mathbf {E} ^{*}} :
M ∝ × E ∗ ] {\displaystyle \mathbf {M} \propto \times \mathbf {E} ^{*}]}
From this equation we see that the circularly polarized light with the frequency ω {\displaystyle \omega } should induce a magnetization along the wave vector k {\displaystyle \mathbf {k} }. Because E → {\displaystyle {\vec {E}}} is in the vector product, left- and right-handed polarization waves should induce magnetization of opposite signs.
The induced magnetization is comparable to the saturated magnetization of the media.