Multiple frequency radiofrequency-optical resonance in a four-level model of rubidium atoms with optical pumping

We consider a four-level model for alkali metal atoms with optical pumping by nonresonant light under conditions when magnetic dipole transitions are induced between energy sublevels of the hyperfine structure in the ground state. We present the dependences of the observed signal as a function of the frequency detuning of the applied rf fields relative to the resonant value, calculated in the density matrix formalism. We note the absence of a light shift in the radiofrequency-optical resonance signal, independent of the amplitude of the rf field and the optical and thermal relaxation rates. We show that when using a modulation technique for phase detection of the signal, its maximum discrimination ability is observed under conditions for simultaneous modulation of the pump light intensity and the frequency of the rf field, which in principle does not occur in the classical two-level model for optically oriented atoms in magnetic resonance. __________ Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 73, No. 3, pp. 326–329, May–June, 2006.     

Optical chaos and hysteresis in a laser-diode pumped Nd doped fibre laser

Modulated pumping of a Nd³⁺ doped silica monomode fibre laser has been investigated experimentally. For small modulation depths the laser exhibits a resonance at the relaxation oscillation frequency, providing pulses of a few microseconds duration at a repetition rate in the region of 10 kHz, dependent on the average pump level above threshold. As the pump modulation depth is increased, hysteresis is observed as a function of modulation frequency, along with optical bistability. For further increase in modulation depth, optical chaos and period doubling are observed. Gain-switching has also been demonstrated.     

Interrelationship between the polarization moments of different parity upon optical pumping of atoms under magnetic resonance conditions: III. Comparison of theory with experiment

The optical pumping of Cs atoms with light of the D ₁ line under magnetic resonance conditions is numerically calculated. This calculation is done to check the suggestion that an unexpectedly strong influence of the polarization of the pumping light on the resonance signals of transverse alignment, which we observed experimentally, is caused by the coupling between orientation and alignment by means of the magnetic field and/or the pumping light. This suggestion has been confirmed: upon circularly polarized pumping, the shape of the signal line of transverse alignment proved to be similar, as well as in the experiment, to the shape of the signal line of transverse orientation and was sharply different from the shape of the line of alignment observed upon linearly polarized pumping. For metastable 2³ S ₁ ⁴He atoms, in accordance with the experimental data, the calculated shape of the signal line of transverse alignment is found to be independent of the polarization of the pumping light. The calculations also confirm the possibility of a reverse effect: the influence of alignment on orientation, which manifests itself in the occurrence of orientation upon pumping with unpolarized light under magnetic resonance conditions. For Cs atoms exposed to a field of ～0.6 Oe, the largest contribution to this effect is yielded by the field coupling of orientation and alignment, whereas, for metastable 2³ S ₁ ⁴He atoms, the largest contribution is made by the light coupling of these polarization moments.     

Orientational frequency shifts of microwave 0-0 superfine resonance in 87Rb vapor with selective optical pumping

The orientational frequency shift of the UHF radio-optical resonance in the ⁸⁷Rb vapor with a selective optical pumping by laser and lamp sources is studied experimentally and theoretically. A leading role of the tensor component of the light shift is noticed for both excitation modes, and a modulation technique of the resonance frequency orientation shift suppression is demonstrated. We show that it is necessary to ensure a constancy of the angle between the pump light direction and the external magnetic field vector when using a rubidium quantum discriminator based on moving and rotating carriers.     

Contribution of the tensor component to the light shift of the rf optical microwave resonance frequency in rubidium vapor

We have calculated the tensor component of the light shift for the frequency of the rf optical microwave resonance on the magnetically independen 0−0 and 1, −1 transitions in rubidium-87 atoms under conditions of isotope filtering of the resonant pump light. We have observed a difference between the temperatures of the filter cell at which a zero frequency shift is achieved for the rf optical resonance for these transitions. We have noted that selective optical pumping on theD ₁ lines is advisable when using a two-photon microwave transition in rubidium vapor in applications. St. Petersburg State Technical University, St. Petersburg. Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, Vol. 42, No. 2, pp. 86–90, February, 1999.     

Optimization of a magnetic-resonance signal under conditions of an unresolved radiofrequency spectrum of alkali atoms

The conditions for optimization of the regimes of optical pumping in optically oriented alkali atoms under total overlap of the components of low-frequency Zeeman and multiphoton shf resonances in the ground state are considered. The difference in the contribution of the light of pumping by the D₁ line to the rates of longitudinal and transverse relaxation is shown in terms of a two-level model of rubidium and cesium atoms, and values of the optimum pumping rate corresponding to the maximum of the quality factor of the recorded signal have been calculated. Experimental estimation of the relaxation rates was made by the signal of low-frequency Zeeman resonance in optically oriented rubidium and cesium atoms under conditions of homogeneous and inhomogeneous magnetic fields. It is shown that in pumping by the D₁ line from a lamp source and with balance of the dark times of the longitudinal and transverse relaxation the optimum pumping rate differs significantly from its values known from the literature. St. Petersburg State Technical University, 29, Politekhnicheskaya St., St. Petersburg, 195251, Russia. Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 64, No. 1, pp. 71–75, January–February, 1997.     

光抽运信号的理论分析

在原子辐射跃迁原理的基础上,依据光磁共振实验的基本实验现象建立简化模型,给出光抽运过程中跃迁速率方程,理论计算了光抽运信号光强随外场变化关系以及粒子跃迁弛豫时间随外场的变化关系,理论计算结果与实验符合.     

Interrelationship between the polarization moments of different parity upon optical pumping of atoms under the magnetic resonance conditions: I. Experiment on the <Superscript>133</Superscript>Cs and <Superscript>4</Superscript>He atoms

In an experiment with an optical pumping of ¹³³Cs atoms in the 6² S _1/2 ground state, the line shape of the D ^2f magnetic resonance signal for the transverse alignment component oscillating at a double frequency f of a radio-frequency (RF) magnetic field is found to strongly depend on the polarization of pumping radiation. On passage from a linearly polarized pumping light to a circularly polarized (CP) light with a sufficiently strong RF field the ordinary three-peak line with the highest central peak transforms into a two-peak line with a minimum at the center, so that the D ^2f signal line resembles the M ^f signal line of a transverse orientation oscillating at the RF field frequency f. This suggests that the orientation (the first-rank polarization moment (PM)) arising upon CP pumping affects the alignment (the second-rank PM); i.e., the PMs of Cs atoms with different parities of their ranks become coupled. No influence of the polarization of a pumping radiation on the line shape of the D ^2f signal is observed in a similar experiment with the ⁴He atoms in the 2³ S ₁ metastable state.     

Push-pull optical pumping of pure superposition states

A new optical pumping method, "push-pull pumping," can produce very nearly pure, coherent superposition states between the initial and the final sublevels of the important field-independent 0-0 clock resonance of alkali-metal atoms. The key requirement for push-pull pumping is the use of D1 resonant light which alternates between left and right circular polarization at the Bohr frequency of the state. The new pumping method works for a wide range of conditions, including atomic beams with almost no collisions, and atoms in buffer gases with pressures of many atmospheres.     

Wavelength modulation absorption spectrometry from optically pumped collision broadened atoms and molecules

A theoretical investigation of the influence of optical pumping on wavelength modulation absorption spectrometry (WMAS) signals from collision broadened atoms and molecules is presented. General expressions for the nf-WMAS signal from atomic and molecular systems, modeled as three-level systems that can accommodate both optical saturation and optical pumping, are derived by the use of a previously developed Fourier series-based formalism in combination with rate equations solved under steady-state conditions. The expressions are similar to those describing the nf-WMAS signal from two-level systems that can accommodate optical saturation [Schmidt FM, Foltynowicz A, Gustafsson J, Axner O, WMAS from optically saturated collision-broadened transitions. JQSRT 2005;94:225-54], the difference being the value of the saturation flux, wherefore the general parametric dependence of WMAS signals from optically pumped systems is the same as that from optically saturated systems. The additional effect of optical pumping on the WMAS signal is investigated for three typical cases: molecules or atoms in an ordinary atmosphere, atoms in an inert atmosphere, and atoms or molecules possessing metastable states. The possibility to describe any of these systems with a two-level model is investigated.     

Light-Induced shifts in the frequency of a multiphoton radiooptical SHF resonance in alkali atoms

A computation is carried out for light-induced shifts in the frequency of a multiphoton radiooptical SHF resonance in alkali atoms on the basis of the quantum formalism of spherical tensors. The components of a light-induced shift in frequency at magneto-independent 0–0– and 1,–1-transitions in⁸⁷Rb atoms under the conditions of isotopic filtration of the resonance light of pumping are calculated. The difference between the temperatures of a filter cell is discovered at which the point of zero shift in the frequency of radiooptical resonance is attained. The components of the light-induced shift of frequency in optically oriented⁸⁷Rb and¹³³Cs atoms are compared in the absence of collisional reorientation in excited state. The prevailing role of the tensor component of light-induced shift in pumping by the D₁-line of a head doublet and the effect of the orientational dependence of the frequency of a multiphoton resonance on change in the sign of the pumping source radiation polarization are noted. St. Petersburg State Polytechnical University, 29 Politekhnicheskaya Str., St. Petersburg, 195251, Russia. Translated from Zburnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 65, No. 6, pp. 832–838, November–December, 1998.     

Spin polarization in a freely evolving sample of cold atoms

We have implemented and optimized a technique of spin polarization by optical pumping in a caesium atomic fountain, gaining a nearly fivefold increase in the useful cold atom signal in detection. This allows an improvement of the fountain clock stability without compromising its accuracy. We present a detailed study of optical pumping in a freely evolving cloud of cold caesium atoms: we have investigated theoretically and experimentally the dynamics of the pumping process and the associated heating due to random photon scattering. The heating limits the potential gain in the fountain signal due to an additional cloud expansion. A high degree of spin polarization was achieved with accumulation of up to 97 % of the population in a single magnetic (m _F  = 0) sublevel of the ground state. Factors affecting the achievable spin polarizations, such as the purity of the pumping light polarization and the shadowing effect in the cloud, were considered. This technique may also be used in atom interferometers and for other alkali metal systems.     

Frequency-dependent optical pumping in atomic ?-systems

We consider the effects of optical pumping on the conversion of laser-frequency modulation into intensity modulation by an atomic absorption line in a vapor of alkali atoms driven in a ?-configuration. It is found that, due to optical pumping in combination with the excited-state hyperfine structure, the absorption line shape is distorted substantially as the Fourier frequency of the FM is changed. The most significant effect of the distortion is a shift of the apparent line center, which depends on how the frequency of the modulation compares with the optical pumping rate. This shift has implications for locking lasers to atomic transitions and also for FM-AM noise conversion in atomic vapors.     

V.L. Ginzburg’s elliptic screw polarization modes in an optical medium with linear birefringence and twist: Determination of their parameters by the method of Jones matrices

The effect of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) has been experimentally implemented for the first time for the (4S _1/2–4P _1/2–4S _1/2) Λ-system of potassium atom levels in a nanocell with a 770-nm-thick column of atomic vapor. It is shown that, at such a small thickness of the vapor column, the EIT resonance can be observed only when the coupling-laser frequency is in exact resonance with the frequency of the corresponding atomic transition. The EIT resonance disappears even if the coupling-laser frequency differs slightly (by ~50 MHz) from that of the corresponding atomic transition, which is due to the high thermal velocity of K atoms. The EIT resonance and related velocity selective optical pumping resonances caused by optical pumping (formed by the coupling) can be simultaneously recorded because of the small (~462 MHz) hyperfine splitting of the lower 4S _1/2 level.     

利用光泵磁共振实验测量重庆地区地磁场

通过光泵磁共振实验设计,对水平场、扫场信号、地磁场不同组合情况下的光泵磁共振信号进行了观测和记录,利用线性拟合的方法测算出铷原子的因子,测算误差只有0.24％；采用固定射频测地磁场的实验方法测得重庆地区的地磁场为0.391 8 GS.该应用实验成果丰富了创新性、实用性实验教学内容.     

Interrelationship between the polarization moments of different parity upon optical pumping of atoms under magnetic resonance conditions: II. Theory

The mutual coupling between the polarization moments with ranks of different parity is theoretically considered. The manifestation of this mutual coupling has been revealed previously in experiments on magnetic resonance of optically oriented cesium atoms. The two well-known types of the coupling between the polarization moments are considered: the field coupling of these moments that occur due to the breaking of the hyperfine coupling between the electronic and nuclear moments of the alkali atom by the magnetic field and the light coupling of the moments due to the absorption of the pumping light by polarized atoms. The experimentally observed similarity in the shape of resonance signals of alignment and orientation upon circularly polarized pumping can be explained by the fact that, for alkali atoms, the generation of alignment by light at the wavelength of the D ₁ line is of low efficiency. Therefore, alignment arises mainly from orientation by means of either the field or the light coupling of polarization moments. For metastable 2³ S ₁ ⁴He atoms, no influence of the orientation on the alignment was observed because, in these atoms, the field coupling between the polarization moments is absent and the light coupling is not displayed because the generation of alignment by the circularly polarized pumping light is more efficient than the creation of alignment from orientation by means of light coupling of polarization moments.     

Optical control of the refractive index of a single atom

We experimentally demonstrate the elementary case of electromagnetically induced transparency with a single atom inside an optical cavity probed by a weak field. We observe the modification of the dispersive and absorptive properties of the atom by changing the frequency of a control light field. Moreover, a strong cooling effect has been observed at two-photon resonance, increasing the storage time of our atoms twenty-fold to about 16 seconds. Our result points towards all-optical switching with single photons.     

Nonlinear-optical loop mirror demultiplexer using a random birefringence fiber: comparisons between simulations and experiments

A numerical simulation of the switching characteristics of a polarization multiplexed nonlinear-optical loop mirror demultiplexer is presented and compared with experiment. The model assumes that the optical fiber that composes the loop has a randomly varying birefringence, that the signal and the control pulses have the same frequency, and that these pulses are nearly solitons. Factors that affect the shape and the width of the switching window curve are discussed. A phase-dependent modulation of the switching window curve, which is due to incomplete averaging of the light polarization state, is observed both experimentally and numerically. Models in which the randomness is neglected are not able to describe this modulation adequately.     

The formation of a light field with suppressed photon fluctuations by nonlinear optical methods

A quantum theory is developed to describe optical parametric amplification under low-frequency pumping, which is observed in nonlinear photonic crystals in sequential interactions of light waves with multiple frequencies. Spatial variations of the mean number of photons and the Fano factor at signal and additional frequencies are analyzed. It is shown that a field with a sub-Poisson statistics of photons can be formed at a signal frequency which is 1.5 times higher than the frequency of pumping.     

Frequency-selective laser optical pumping and spin exchange of cesium with129Xe and131Xe in a high magnetic field

We report the experimental results of frequency-selective laser optical pumping and spin exchange of Cs with¹²⁹Xe and¹³¹Xe in a high magnetic field of 11.74 T. Our results show that hyperpolarized¹²⁹Xe and¹³¹Xe nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) signals exhibit alternating phases when the laser frequency for pumping the cesium atoms is changed, which is explained on the basis of the high-field optical pumping of Cs. We obtain about 3% polarization of the¹²⁹Xe. The electron-spin polarization of the Cs atoms has been measured to be about 22% with a simple NMR method.