Polarization Phenomena in Transparency and Absorption Effects Induced by the Field of Unidirectional Waves

Physical processes that form the spectra of saturated absorption and magnetic scanning resonances on an atomic transition with level momentum J = 1 in the field of unidirectional waves of arbitrary intensity under variation in their polarization directions are investigated by numerical simulation and analytically. It is shown that anomalies in nonlinear resonance spectra are determined by the polarization of the waves and the degree of openness of the atomic transition, while anomalies in the experimentally observed magnetic scanning spectra are attributed to the magnetic coherence induced by the fields directly on the levels of the lower state, rather than to its transfer from the excited states, as was assumed earlier.     

A new type of resonances in saturated absorption spectroscopy of 3-level systems

We report the experimental observation of new resonances in saturated absorption spectra of a J = 1 to J = 0 transition of Ne atoms in a static magnetic field. These resonances, which are distinct from the well-known Zeeman and cross-over resonances, result from the modification of stimulated Raman processes by the simultaneous resonant saturation of an optical transition. The light-shifts of the various resonances are also studied.     

The influence of higher spatial harmonics of atomic polarization on the saturated absorption resonance upon excitation of open dipole transitions by a field of counterpropagating waves

The effect of a double structure of saturated absorption resonance in the field of counterpropagating light waves interacting with an atomic gas is studied. The experimental observation of this effect was first reported in 2011 in a work by our colleagues at the P.N. Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Laboratory of Frequency Standards). The essence of the effect lies in the fact that, on exciting an open dipole transition, another, narrower, resonance of an opposite sign can be observed at the center of the ordinary saturated absorption resonance. A theoretical analysis of this effect has also been performed in this work in terms of a simple spectroscopic model of an atom with two nondegenerate energy levels without taking into account higher spatial harmonics of atomic polarization and polarizations of light waves (scalar model). The present work is devoted to the development of a theory of the formation of a central narrow resonance for the example of a real F _g = 1 → F _e = 1 atomic transition and to the study of its main characteristics (amplitude, width, contrast, and amplitude-to-width ratio). In addition, the theoretical results obtained without taking into account the influence of higher spatial harmonics and with inclusion of the influence of first higher harmonics are compared. This comparison shows that their influence on the parameters of the new nonlinear resonance is strong even in moderately intense light fields (R ~ γ, where R is the Rabi frequency). The results of this study can be of interest for quantum metrology, as well as for many experiments in which the laser-radiation frequency is stabilized by the saturated absorption resonance on open dipole transitions in atoms and molecules.     

Studying the regime of complete decoupling of the bond between the electron and nuclear moments at the <Emphasis Type="Italic">D</Emphasis><Subscript>1</Subscript>-line of the <Superscript>39</Superscript>K potassium isotope using a spectroscopic microcell

Atomic transitions of the ³⁹K potassium isotope in strong (up to 1 kG) longitudinal and transverse magnetic fields have been studied with a high spectral resolution. It has been shown that crossover resonances are almost absent in the saturated absorption spectrum of potassium vapors in a 30-μm-thick microcell. This, together with the small spectral width of atomic transitions (~30 MHz), allows one to use the saturated absorption spectrum for determining frequencies and probabilities of individual transitions. Among the alkali metals, potassium atoms have the smallest magnitude of the hyperfine splitting of the lower level. This allows one to observe the break of the coupling between the electronic and nuclear angular momentums at comparatively low magnetic fields B > 500 G, i.e., to implement the hyperfine Paschen–Back regime (HPB). In the HPB regime, four equidistantly positioned transitions with the same amplitude are detected in circularly polarized light (σ⁺). In linearly polarized light (π) at the transverse orientation of the magnetic field, the spectrum consists of eight lines which are grouped in two groups each of which consists of four lines. Each group has a special distinguished G-transition and the transition that is forbidden in the zero magnetic field. In the HPB regime, the probabilities of transitions in a group and derivatives of their frequency shifts with respect to the magnetic field asymptotically tend to magnitudes that are typical for the aforesaid distinguished G-transition. Some practical applications for the used microcell are mentioned.     

The influence of EIT effect with double windows on electromagnetic characteristics of quasi-Λ-four-level atomic system

In this paper, the electromagnetic characteristics of quasi-Λ-four-level atomic system influenced by electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) effect with double windows are investigated theoretically. It is shown that the permittivity can get two negative extreme values in transparent window extents and the permeability can realize negative value. Consequently, the atomic system can obtain the negative refraction in discontinuous probe detuning frequency ranges. EIT effect with double transparent windows would extend the tuning frequency range of realizing left handedness in atomic system. Furthermore, due to the strong magnetic transition, the real part of the refractive index and the absorption of atomic system can obtain negative values in the same certain frequency band. Such left-handed quasi-Λ-four-level atomic system may become an active medium.     

The Effect of an Antirelaxation Coating on Absorption in the <Emphasis Type="Italic">D</Emphasis><Subscript>2</Subscript> Lines of Alkali Metals

The specific features of absorption in a cell with an antirelaxation coating related to optical pumping and a finite rate of laser-frequency scanning are studied. The internal state of an atom in such cells is likely to remain unaltered after a collision with a wall. This results in optical pumping of an atomic ensemble over all velocities and the entire cell volume. Both the frequency corresponding to the maximum absorption in the D₂ line of ¹³³Cs and the absorption maximum itself depend on the sign of laser-frequency scanning. A theoretical model attributing the power dependence of asymmetry of the absorption contour of the ¹³³Cs D₂ line to the presence of cyclic transition levels in the system is presented.     

Superconductivity and magnetism in dilute CdMn alloys. Strong depression in Tc

The superconducting transition temperature in dilute CdMn is depressed by 220K/at.% Mn. The Mn content was determined by Curie constant, resistance and atomic absorption measurements on the same sample. A small amount of the Mn is magnetically passive; the remaining Mn atoms have an effective magnetic moment of 4.80μ_B.     

Behavior of the magnetic subsystems in Nd2BaNiO5

The temperature dependences of the heat capacity, the magnetic susceptibility, and the splitting of the ground Kramers doublet of the Nd³⁺ ion in the chain magnet Nd₂BaNiO₅ are studied. An antiferromagnetic phase transition manifests itself as anomalies in all these dependences. The parameters of the Nd-Ni and Nd-Nd interactions are estimated. The field dependence of the magnetization has two anomalies. A strong magnetic anisotropy prevents the magnetic moments of the Nd³⁺ ion from deviating from axis c in the crystal even in an external magnetic field. The processes of magnetization and the internal specific features of a chain of spins S = 1 are discussed.     

Doppler-free satellites of resonances of electromagnetically induced transparency and absorption on the D 2 lines of alkali metals

The peculiarities of intra-Doppler structures that are observed in the atomic absorption spectrum of alkali metals with the help of two independent lasers have been studied. These structures accompany ultranarrow coherent resonances of electromagnetically induced transparency and absorption. With the D ₂ line of rubidium taken as an example, it is shown that, in the scheme of unidirectional waves, the maximum number of satellite resonances caused by optical pumping selective with respect to the atomic velocity is equal to seven, while only six resonances are observed in the traditional scheme of saturated absorption with counterpropagating waves of the same frequency. The spectral position of the resonances and their polarity depend on the frequency of the saturating radiation, while their number and relative amplitude depend also on the experimental geometry. These features are of general character and should show themselves in the absorption spectrum on the D ₂ lines of all alkali metals. An explanation of these features is given. The calculated spectral separations between the resonances are compared to the experimental ones, and their possible application is discussed.     

Shift and asymmetry of the saturated absorption resonance in the field of counterpropagating elliptically polarized waves

The saturated absorption resonance in an atomic gas in the field of counterpropagating light waves with an arbitrary elliptical polarization is investigated. A conclusion about the peculiarities of the resonance shape is drawn from a general analysis of the symmetry of the problem. In particular, a new effect has been found: the polarization parameters of the light waves can lead to an asymmetry and shift of the resonance. These conclusions are corroborated by an approximate analytical solution for the F _g = 1 → F _e = 2 transition and by numerical calculations. Apart from their fundamental importance, the results obtained can have important applications in metrology (frequency and time standards).     

Subnatural linewidth in a strongly-driven degenerate two-level system

We observe linewidths below the natural linewidth for a probe laser on a degenerate two-level F → F′ transition, when the same transition is driven by a strong control laser. We take advantage of the fact that each level of the transition is made of multiple magnetic sublevels, and use the phenomenon of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) or absorption (EIA) in multilevel systems. Optical pumping by the control laser redistributes the population so that only a few sublevels contribute to the probe absorption, an explanation which is verified by a density-matrix analysis of the relevant sublevels. We observe more than a factor of 3 reduction in linewidth in the D₂ line of Rb in room-temperature vapor. Such subnatural features vastly increase the scope of applications of EIT, such as high-resolution spectroscopy and tighter locking of lasers to atomic transitions, since it is not always possible to find a suitable third level.     

Atomic beam preparation for hydrogen maser operation with unpolarized atoms

The conventional atomic beam preparation technique for hydrogen maser operation consists of a six pole magnetic field focussing in combination with adiabatically changing magnetic fields in the transition region between focusser and maser cavity, which results in a state selected, polarized ensemble of hydrogen atoms. Hydrogen maser operation with state selected, but unpolarized atoms has the advantage to reduce considerably the sensitivity of hydrogen maser frequency on coherently excited, low frequency,Δm _F =±1 Zeeman transitions. The influence of the magnetic field pattern in the transition region on the energy level population probabilities for the focussed hydrogen beam has been analysed. Atomic beam preparation techniques using non-adiabatically changing magnetic field configurations in the transition region are described. The dependence of hydrogen maser oscillation on the energy level population within the atomic beam is theoretically investigated and the results are used for the analysis of the experimentally achieved atomic beam populations. It has been shown that a pulsed magnetic spin guidance field in the transition region, which switches between adiabatically changing magnetic field configurations and a sudden magnetic field reversal, results in an ensemble of hydrogen atoms with vanishing time averaged polarization, which does not deteriorate the conventionally achieved maser oscillation amplitude.     

Crystal structure and magnetization of a Co3B2O6 single crystal

The crystal structure and magnetic properties of Co₃B₂O₆ single crystals are studied. Orthorhombic symmetry with space group Pnnm is detected at room temperature. The measurements of static magnetization and dynamic magnetic susceptibility reveal two magnetic anomalies at T ₁ = 33 K and T ₂ = 10 K and an easy-axis magnetic anisotropy. The effective magnetic moment indicates a high-spin state of the Co²⁺ ion. A spin-flop transition is found at low temperatures and H _sf = 23 kOe. EXAFS spectra of the K-edge absorption of Co are recorded at various temperatures, the temperature-induced changes in the parameters of the local environment of cobalt are analyzed, and the effective Co-Co and Co-O distances are determined. The magnetic interactions in the crystal are analyzed in terms of an indirect coupling model.     

Optical magnetometer with submicron spatial resolution based on Rb vapors

It is shown experimentally that use of fluorescence and transmission spectra obtained from nanocells with the thickness of column of rubidium atomic vapor L = λ/2 and L = λ, respectively (λ = 794 nm is the wavelength of laser radiation close to resonance with D ₁-line transition of Rb atoms), by means of a narrowband diode laser allows spectral separation and study of variations of probabilities of atomic transitions between ground and excited states of hfs of D ₁ lines of ⁸⁵Rb and ⁸⁷Rb atoms in the range of magnetic fields from 10 to 5000 G. Small thickness of atomic vapor column (∼390 nm and ∼794 nm) allows applying permanent magnets simplifying essentially creation of strong magnetic fields. Advantages of this technique are discussed as compared with the technique of saturated absorption. The obtained results show that a nanocell with submicrom thickness of vapor column may serve as a basis for designing a magnetometer with submicron local spatial resolution which is important in case of measuring strongly inhomogeneous magnetic fields. Experimental data are in good agreement with the theoretical results.     

Level-degeneracy effects in resonant nonlinear phenomena: Three-level atomic model

The role of level degeneracy in resonant nonlinear phenomena is examined by considering theJ=1 →J=0 atomic transition. The atomic medium is modelled as a homogeneously broadened three-level system and a closed-form expression for the medium susceptibility is obtained. It is used to discuss several nonlinear phenomena such as saturated absorption, optical bistability, and phase conjugation. The two-photon-induced coupling of the ground-state Zeeman sublevels leads to interesting polarization effects.     

Continuous spin-reorientation phase transition in the surface region of an inhomogeneous magnetic film

A continuous spin-reorientation transition from a uniform magnetic state with the in-plane orientation of the moments of all atomic layers to a nonuniform canted state in the surface region is considered. This transition was discovered in experiments on the divergence of magnetic susceptibility in a perpendicular magnetic field at a temperature of about 240 K, which is lower than the Curie point of gadolinium, equal to 292.5 K. These experiments were carried out on an ultrathin iron magnetic film deposited on the (0001) surface of a thin gadolinium film. It is shown that, in the vicinity of the spin-reorientation transition, the thermodynamic potential has a form characteristic of the Landau theory of second-order phase transitions. The orientation angle of the moment of the surface atomic layer with respect to the plane of the film, which is chosen as an order parameter, exhibits anomalous behavior and increases with temperature. Expressions are derived for the magnetic susceptibility of each atomic layer. It is shown that, in the vicinity of the transition, the irregular part of the magnetic susceptibility of each atomic layer exhibits behavior characteristic of the susceptibility in the Landau theory: it is less by a factor of two in the low-symmetry phase and diverges at the transition point. The regular part of the magnetic susceptibility of each atomic layer makes an additional contribution to the asymmetry of the total susceptibility in the vicinity of the transition point; this result follows from the fact that the inhomogeneous magnetic system considered is semi-infinite.     

Coherent Forward Scattering Spectrometer as a Wavelength Tuning Indicator for Diode Laser Atomic Absorption Spectrometry

A coherent forward scattering spectrometer was used as a wavelength tuning indicator for diode laser atomic absorption spectrometry. Atomic absorption transition of excited argon atoms at 842.46 nm was investigated. Argon atoms were excited in a glow discharge. Coherent forward scattering signal attained maximum at 0.1 T of external magnetic field and at 12 mA discharge current in 266 Pa (2 Torr) of argon. When the lasing wavelength crossed an atomic absorption line, a spike-like signal was observed. When a continuous coherent forward scattering signal was observed, the lasing wavelength was confirmed to approach within about ±3 pm from the absorption transition of argon.     

Measurement of silver vapor density by an optical method

The density of silver saturated vapor has been measured in the temperature range 710 °C–820 °C. The density values were obtained by measuring the absorption coefficient of the resonance lineλ=3 383 Å by magnetic scanning. The experimental density points have been fitted with the equation lgN=A?B/T? lgT and the best values ofA andB were found to beA=24.2525,B=10416.2.     

Magnetic and electrical properties of amorphous PdCoP alloys

Magnetic susceptibility and electrical resistivity measurements were performed (Pd_100?xCo_x)₈₀P₂₀ alloys where 15 < x < 50. The magnetic properties show that these alloys undergo a ferromagnetic transition between 272 and 399 K as the cobalt concentration increases from 15 to 50 atomic %. Below 20 atomic % Co the short-range exchange interactions which produce the ferromagnetism are unable to establish a long-range magnetic order and a peak in the magnetization shows up at the lowest temperature range under an applied field of 6.0 kOe. The electrical resistivity of these alloys has been measured from 4.2 K up to the vinicity of the melting point (900 K). The electrical resistivity data could be interpreted by the coexistence fo a Kondo-like minimum and ferromagnetism. The minimum becomes less important as the transition metal concentration increases. The coefficients of In T and T² become smaller and concentration dependent. The spin ordering in such alloys can be simulated as either the ordering due to an applied “external field” or as an increase in “internal fields”. These are due to an increase in transition metal concentration. The negative magnetoresistivity is a strong indication of the existence of localized moment.