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arXiv:0711.0009 · Journal of Modern Optics

Interference between competing pathways in the interaction of three-level ladder atoms and radiation

Tony Abi-Salloum

Published Apr 8, 2010• 16 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

In this paper we explore the physical origin of the transparency induced in absorbing three-level cascade atoms by the simultaneous interplay of two coherent beams of light. By utilizing the scattering technique we offer what we believe is a very convincing physical evidence for the existence, or for the absence, of quantum interference effects in the two considered ladder systems. Bare and dressed states pictures are adopted in two different field regimes when applicable. The conclusions are drawn based on the existence of different excitation pathways and their relative orders of magnitudes. The presented study includes a distinction between the Autler–Townes (AT) and electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) phenomena.

DOI
10.1080/09500341003658147

Related papers

Interference between competing pathways in the interaction of three-level atoms and radiation

Tony Abi-Salloum, Lorenzo M. Narducci

The appearance of quantum interference in the microscopic world is one of the deepest mysteries at the very root of quantum mechanics. When light interacts with atoms, it can induce transitions by way of distinct but indistinguishable pathways and yield unexpected and often counter-intuitive results. Electromagnetically Induced Transparency (EIT), Coherent Population Trapping (CPT), and Lasing Without Inversion (LWI) are modern examples of phenomena where the traditional rules that govern absorption and dispersion undergo major revisions. Spectacular consequences of this new state of affairs include the ability of a light beam to propagate through a normally absorbing medium with little or no absorption, or to undergo amplification even if the active medium is not prepared in a state of population inversion. Light signals have been shown to travel with strongly subluminal group velocities of only a handful of meters per second and, even, to propagate at speed greater than the ordinary speed of light, but without violation of causality or of the established rules that control the transfer of optical information through space. Three-level atoms can interact with two coherent electromagnetic fields according to three different systems, known as Cascade, Lambda and Vee systems. The propagation of a weak probe field can be deeply affected by the presence of a second stronger beam, the so-called coupling field. Transparency windows, splitting of emission and absorption lines and enormously enhanced dispersion have been documented in numerous experiments. In this thesis we explore the physical origin of the transparency induced in these systems by the simultaneous interplay of the coupling and probe fields. We focus our attention on the Cascade system and study its two configurations, Cascade-EIT and Cascade-AT. We develop a variety of complementary approaches for the description of these two configurations, some semiclassical and others fully quantum mechanical. We prove the existence of quantum interference in Electromagnetically Induced Transparency and also the surprising absence of interference in a closely related phenomenon, known as the Autler-Townes effect. Finally we complement the traditional machinery of theoretical quantum optics with techniques borrowed from quantum scattering theory, and offer what we believe is the most convincing physical evidence for the appearance, or for the absence, of quantum interference effects.

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Abstract In this paper, the physical origin of interferences has been explored in a four-level cascade rubidium atom by simultaneous interaction with three energies; two optical fields and one radio frequency (RF) field. The atomic system is investigated by a combination of the analytical method introduced by Zhu et al (2010 Phys. Rev. A 81 053836) and resonant pole method introduced by Anisimov (2008 J. Mod. Opt. 55 ). A substantial amount of variation in the probe absorption has been observed in various regimes. The transition from electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) to Autler–Townes spitting (ATS) is observed. It is found that a definite threshold value exists governing the crossover from EIT to ATS. The applied analytical method gives a clear insight into the nature of interferences; one may observe EIT as a consequence of destructive interference, whereas ATS is a consequence of constructive interference. Furthermore, a transition from single EIT to double electromagnetically induced transparency has been detected when the system is illuminated by RF-driving field in weak control regime. Further, transition from ATS to double Autler–Townes splitting has been observed in the strong control regime.

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EIT and AT: Two Similar but Distinct Phenomena in Two Categories of Three-Level Atomic Systems

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Tony Abi-Salloum

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Electromagnetically induced transparency properties in the cascade quasi-Λ-four-level system

Xiaomin Feng

The A-type three-level system coupled by two coherent fields is a basic model to study the electromagnetically induced transparency(EIT).Based on that,the cascade quasi- A-four-level configuration is formed when a radio-frequency(RF)field drives the transition between the excited state and an additional excited state level.The absorption property is studied along with the parameters of the coupling field and the RF driving field by numerically solving the relevant equations of motion of the density matrix.It is shown that under the applying of the coupling field and the RF driving field,both the Autler-Townes doublet and the EIT are observed in the absorptive spectra and it can be explained properly by the theory of dressed state.An important conclusion is that the Autler-Townes doublet originates from the atom system interaction with the strong RF field,while the EIT originates from atom system quantum interference interaction with the coupling field.

Chinese Journal of Quantum Electronics•Jan 1, 2007•0 citations
In this paper we explore the physical origin of the transparency induced in absorbing three-level cascade atoms by the simultaneous interplay of two coherent beams of light. By utilizing the scattering technique we offer what we believe is a very convincing physical evidence for the existence, or for the absence, of quantum interference effects in the two considered ladder systems. Bare and dressed states pictures are adopted in two different field regimes when applicable. The conclusions are drawn based on the existence of different excitation pathways and their relative orders of magnitudes. The presented study includes a distinction between the Autler–Townes (AT) and electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) phenomena.
The appearance of quantum interference in the microscopic world is one of the deepest mysteries at the very root of quantum mechanics. When light interacts with atoms, it can induce transitions by way of distinct but indistinguishable pathways and yield unexpected and often counter-intuitive results. Electromagnetically Induced Transparency (EIT), Coherent Population Trapping (CPT), and Lasing Without Inversion (LWI) are modern examples of phenomena where the traditional rules that govern absorption and dispersion undergo major revisions. Spectacular consequences of this new state of affairs include the ability of a light beam to propagate through a normally absorbing medium with little or no absorption, or to undergo amplification even if the active medium is not prepared in a state of population inversion. Light signals have been shown to travel with strongly subluminal group velocities of only a handful of meters per second and, even, to propagate at speed greater than the ordinary speed of light, but without violation of causality or of the established rules that control the transfer of optical information through space. Three-level atoms can interact with two coherent electromagnetic fields according to three different systems, known as Cascade, Lambda and Vee systems. The propagation of a weak probe field can be deeply affected by the presence of a second stronger beam, the so-called coupling field. Transparency windows, splitting of emission and absorption lines and enormously enhanced dispersion have been documented in numerous experiments. In this thesis we explore the physical origin of the transparency induced in these systems by the simultaneous interplay of the coupling and probe fields. We focus our attention on the Cascade system and study its two configurations, Cascade-EIT and Cascade-AT. We develop a variety of complementary approaches for the description of these two configurations, some semiclassical and others fully quantum mechanical. We prove the existence of quantum interference in Electromagnetically Induced Transparency and also the surprising absence of interference in a closely related phenomenon, known as the Autler-Townes effect. Finally we complement the traditional machinery of theoretical quantum optics with techniques borrowed from quantum scattering theory, and offer what we believe is the most convincing physical evidence for the appearance, or for the absence, of quantum interference effects.
Abstract In this paper, the physical origin of interferences has been explored in a four-level cascade rubidium atom by simultaneous interaction with three energies; two optical fields and one radio frequency (RF) field. The atomic system is investigated by a combination of the analytical method introduced by Zhu et al (2010 Phys. Rev. A 81 053836) and resonant pole method introduced by Anisimov (2008 J. Mod. Opt. 55 ). A substantial amount of variation in the probe absorption has been observed in various regimes. The transition from electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) to Autler–Townes spitting (ATS) is observed. It is found that a definite threshold value exists governing the crossover from EIT to ATS. The applied analytical method gives a clear insight into the nature of interferences; one may observe EIT as a consequence of destructive interference, whereas ATS is a consequence of constructive interference. Furthermore, a transition from single EIT to double electromagnetically induced transparency has been detected when the system is illuminated by RF-driving field in weak control regime. Further, transition from ATS to double Autler–Townes splitting has been observed in the strong control regime.
Electromagnetically Induced Transparency (EIT) and Autler-Townes (AT) are two phenomena that could be featured by a variety of three-level atomic systems. The considered phenomena, EIT and AT, are similar "looking" in the sense that they both are characterized by a reduction in absorption of a weak field in the presence of a stronger field. In this paper, we explicitly set the threshold of separation between EIT and AT in a unified study of four different three-level atomic systems. Two resonances are studied and compared in each case. A comparison of the magnitudes of the resonances reveals two coupling field regimes and two categories of three-level systems.
Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) and Autler-Townes (AT) splitting are two phenomena that could be featured in a variety of three-level atomic systems. The considered phenomena, EIT and AT, are similar ``looking'' in the sense that they are both characterized by a reduction in absorption of a weak field in the presence of a stronger field. In this paper, we explicitly set the threshold of separation between EIT and AT splitting in a unified study of four different three-level atomic systems. Two resonances are studied and compared in each case. A comparison of the magnitudes of the resonances reveals two coupling-field regimes and two categories of three-level system.
We study the electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) effect with two individually addressed four-level Rydberg atoms subjected to the interatomic van der Waals interaction. We derive an effectively atomic Raman transition model where two ladders of the usual Rydberg EIT setting terminating at the same upper Rydberg level of long radiative lifetime are turned into a Rydberg EIT $\ensuremath{\lambda}$ setup via two-photon transitions, leaving the middle levels of each ladder largely detuned from the coupling and probe laser beams. It can hence overcome the limits of applications for EIT with atoms of the ladder-type level configuration involving a strongly decaying intermediate state by inducing coherence between two ground states. By probing one of the atoms, we observe four doublets of absorption induced by the Autler-Townes splitting and the van der Waals interaction. In particular, we find that the location of the EIT center remains unchanged compared to the interatomic-interaction-free case, which demonstrates that the interference among the multiple transition channels is basically destructive. The EIT with controlled Rydberg-Rydberg interaction among a few atoms provides a versatile tool for engineering the propagation dynamics of light.
The A-type three-level system coupled by two coherent fields is a basic model to study the electromagnetically induced transparency(EIT).Based on that,the cascade quasi- A-four-level configuration is formed when a radio-frequency(RF)field drives the transition between the excited state and an additional excited state level.The absorption property is studied along with the parameters of the coupling field and the RF driving field by numerically solving the relevant equations of motion of the density matrix.It is shown that under the applying of the coupling field and the RF driving field,both the Autler-Townes doublet and the EIT are observed in the absorptive spectra and it can be explained properly by the theory of dressed state.An important conclusion is that the Autler-Townes doublet originates from the atom system interaction with the strong RF field,while the EIT originates from atom system quantum interference interaction with the coupling field.