Laser phase modulation approaches towards ensemble quantum computing

Selective control of decoherence is demonstrated for a multilevel system by generalizing the instantaneous phase of any chirped pulse as individual terms of a Taylor series expansion. In the case of a simple two-level system, all odd terms in the series lead to population inversion, while the even terms lead to self-induced transparency. These results also hold for multiphoton transitions that do not have any lower-order photon resonance or any intermediate virtual state dynamics within the laser pulse width. Such results form the basis of a robustly implementable CNOT gate.     

氩原子共振增强多光子电离谱--奇对称性里德堡态

利用脉冲放电产生氩原子亚稳态4s2[3/2]°2和4s′2[1/2]°0,在610～670nm波长范围内,利用共振增强多光子电离和飞行时间质谱技术得到氩原子(2+1)REMPI谱.光谱分析表明所有谱线来源于氩原子4s2[3/2]2和4s′2[1/2]°0两个亚稳态向16个奇对称性里德堡态双光子跃迁,并标识所有谱线.同时首次在实验上观察到一个长序列的3p54s′2[1/2]°0→3p5nd2[1/2]°1(n=8～31)双光子跃迁.在实验技术上,提供了一种研究惰性气体原予以及其它原子高里德堡态和自电离态的新方法.     

Nonlinear absorption of femtosecond light pulses under conditions of multiphoton resonances in solids

A theory of nonlinear absorption of femtosecond light pulses by bulk crystals and nanostructures of differing dimensionality is developed. The pulse width is assumed to be small compared to the relaxation times of the electron and hole momenta. Expressions for the absorbed energy under conditions of multiphoton resonance are derived for transitions between discrete or band-related electron states and between sub-band states of size quantization in quantum wells and quantum wires. The dependence of the absorbed energy on the multiphoton resonance detuning and pulse width is analyzed.     

Autler-Townes splitting in the multiphoton resonance ionization spectrum of molecules produced by ultrashort laser pulses

We report for the first time the proper conditions to observe Autler-Townes splitting (ac-Stark splitting) from vibrationally coherent states belonging to the different electronic terms of a diatomic molecule. Wave packet dynamics simulations demonstrate that such a process is feasible by multiphoton resonance ionization of the molecule Na2 with a single ultrashort intense laser pulse. With the ultrahigh time resolution of a femtosecond laser pulse, one can directly measure the absolute value of the transition dipole moment between any kinds of molecular states by this kind of Autler-Townes splitting, which is a function of the internuclear distance R.     

Frequency dependence of the dissociation of polyatomic molecules by radiation

A procedure is described for calculating the dependence of the collisionless dissociation probability of a polyatomic molecule on the frequency of the laser pulse impinging upon it. Sample calculations performed on a simple molecular model show how coherent multiphoton transitions in the vibrational excitation spectrum can be observed in the curve of dissociation probability versus laser frequency.     

Multiphoton double ionization of barium

The multiphoton double ionization of Ba from ~280 to 700 nm was investigated using laser pulses 5 ns long of peak intensity ~10¹⁰ W/cm². The spectrum consists of a number of strong resonances, which can be assigned to Ba⁺ transitions. Most of the assignments have been verified by pump-probe techniques. Thus, the Ba⁺⁺ observed is due to sequential ionization. The multiphoton ionization probability is highest for λ~500 nm, which matches a series of strong Ba and Ba⁺ transitions leading to double ionization     

铅原子非共振多光子电离过程的研究

在激光波长为1064nm、532nm和355nm下,研究了铅原子的非共振多光子过程.通过改变激光脉冲的线宽研究了铅原子非共振7-光子电离速率和激光统计性的依赖关系.     

Multiphoton transitions in a macroscopic quantum two-state system

We have observed multiphoton transitions between two macroscopic quantum-mechanical superposition states formed by two opposite circulating currents in a superconducting loop with three Josephson junctions. Resonant peaks and dips of up to three-photon transitions were observed in spectroscopic measurements when the system was irradiated with a strong rf-photon field. The widths of the multiphoton absorption dips are shown to scale with the Bessel functions in agreement with theoretical predictions derived from the Bloch equation or from a spin-boson model.     

Strong field multiphoton inversion of a three-level system using shaped ultrafast laser pulses

We demonstrate strong-field population inversion in a three-level system with single and multiphoton coupling between levels using a single shaped ultrafast laser pulse. Our interpretation of the pulse shape dependence illustrates the difference between sequential population transfer and adiabatic rapid passage in three-level systems with multiphoton coupling between levels.     

Multiphoton pi pulses

Multiphoton excitation in a two-level system is exceedingly weak because of small multiphoton coupling strengths, large ac Stark shifts, and ionization. I will discuss a three-level system in which the ac Stark shift is greatly reduced and the multiphoton coupling strength is greatly enhanced over a two-level system, to such an extent that multiphoton pi pulses can be produced. I will also present two-electron calculations in a model potential, including ionization that shows a 12-photon pi pulse driven with 800-nm photons. This three-level configuration may provide the basis for an amplifying medium in the vacuum ultraviolet, as well as multiphoton adiabatic passage and innershell ionization.     

Atom-photon entanglement in the system with competing k-photon and l-photon transitions

We have investigated the evolution of the atomic quantum entropy and the entanglement of atom-photon in the system with competing k-photon and l-photon transitions by means of fully quantum theory, and examined the effects of competing photon numbers （k and l）, the relative coupling strength between the atom and the two-mode field （A/g）, and the initial photon number of the field on the atomic quantum entropy and the entanglement of atom-photon. The results show that the multiphoton competing transitions or the large relative coupling strength can lead to the strong entanglement between atoms and photons. The maximal atom-photon entanglement can be prepared via the appropriate selection of system parameters and interaction time.     

Strong-field atomic phase matching

We interpret a learning-control experiment with the goal of optimizing multiphoton population transfer in atomic sodium in the strong-field limit. Despite multiple experimental constraints, a learning algorithm discovers optimal pulses that can be understood in terms of a simple dynamic picture of the atom-field interaction. We show that the shaped pulses counteract the dynamic Stark-induced stimulated emission that would otherwise impede the efficient use of a pi pulse to invert a multiphoton transition.     

Quantum control by ultrafast polarization shaping

We demonstrate that the use of time-dependent light polarization opens a new level of control over quantum systems. With potassium dimer molecules from a supersonic molecular beam, we show that a polarization-shaped laser pulse increases the ionization yield beyond that obtained with an optimally shaped linearly polarized laser pulse. This is due to the different multiphoton ionization pathways in K2 involving dipole transitions which favor different polarization directions of the exciting laser field. This experiment is a qualitative extension of quantum control mechanisms which opens up new directions giving access to the three-dimensional temporal response of molecular systems.     

Effective field and the Bloch-Siegert shift at bichromatic excitation of multiphoton EPR

The dynamics of multiphoton transitions in a two-level spin system excited by transverse microwave and longitudinal RF fields with the frequencies ω_mw and ω_rf, respectively, is analyzed. The effective time-independent Hamiltonian describing the “dressed” spin states of the “spin + bichromatic field” system is obtained by using the Krylov-Bogoliubov-Mitropolsky averaging method. The direct detection of the time behavior of the spin system by the method of nonstationary nutations makes it possible to identify the multiphoton transitions for resonances ω₀ = ω_mw + rω_rf (ω₀ is the central frequency of the EPR line, r = 1, 2), to measure the amplitudes of the effective fields of these transitions, and to determine the features generated by the inhomogeneous broadening of the EPR line. It is shown that the Bloch-Siegert shifts for multiphoton resonances at the inhomogeneous broadening of spectral lines reduce only the nutation amplitude but do not change their frequencies.     

Transform-Limited Pulses Are Not Optimal for Resonant Multiphoton Transitions

Maximizing nonlinear light-matter interactions is a primary motive for compressing laser pulses to achieve ultrashort transform limited pulses. Here we show how, by appropriately shaping the pulses, resonant multiphoton transitions can be enhanced significantly beyond the level achieved by maximizing the pulse's peak intensity. We demonstrate the counterintuitive nature of this effect with an experiment in a resonant two-photon absorption, in which, by selectively removing certain spectral bands, the peak intensity of the pulse is reduced by a factor of 40, yet the absorption rate is doubled. Furthermore, by suitably designing the spectral phase of the pulse, we increase the absorption rate by a factor of 7.     

Multiphoton resonant transitions in atomic Ba in the presence of additional strong off-resonant radiation

The multiphoton transitions in atomic Ba are experimentally studied in the presence of strong off-resonant radiation that generates additional atomic polarization in the ground state. It is demonstrated that the additionally induced polarization of the Ba atoms in the ground state leads to a higher probability of the multiphoton transitions from this state.     

Landau-Dykhne approximation for multiphoton dipole-forbidden transitions

A two-level system in a monochromatic laser field is considered in the Landau-Dykhne approximation under the violation of dipole selection rules. An analytic expression is obtained for the rate of transitions. The multiphoton and tunneling limits are found.     

Coherent population transfer in an atom by multiphoton adiabatic rapid passage

Coherent population transfer in an atom using a sequence of adiabatic rapid passages through single-photon resonances is well-known, but it requires that the frequency sweep match the changing frequencies of the atomic transitions. The same population transfer can be effected via a single multiphoton adiabatic rapid passage, which requires only a small frequency sweep, if it is possible to select the desired multiphoton transition from the many possible transitions. Here we report the observation of population transfer between Rydberg states by high order multiphoton adiabatic rapid passage.     

Coherent transient enhancement of optically induced resonant transitions

By applying pulse shaping techniques to a broadband 100 fs pulse in resonance with a two-level atomic transition, we are able to enhance the peak transient excited level population relative to that achievable with transform limited pulses. We also demonstrate how the dispersion induced by the absorption line itself leads to similar rapidly oscillating transients in the excited population. These transient population effects are applicable in any multiphoton resonant transition.     

Multiphoton dynamics of qutrits in the ultrastrong coupling regime with a quantized photonic field

Multiphoton resonant excitation of a three-state quantum system (a qutrit) with a single-mode photonic field is considered in the ultrastrong coupling regime, when the qutrit–photonic field coupling rate is comparable to appreciable fractions of the photon frequency. For ultrastrong couplings, the obtained solutions of the Schrödinger equation that reveal multiphoton Rabi oscillations in qutrits with the interference effects leading to the collapse and revival of atomic excitation probabilities at the direct multiphoton resonant transitions.