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arXiv:0905.3734 · Physical Review Letters

Phase Shift of a Weak Coherent Beam Induced by a Single Atom

Syed Abdullah Aljunid, Meng Khoon Tey, Brenda Chng, T. C. H. Liew, Gleb Maslennikov, Valerio Scarani, Christian Kurtsiefer

Published Oct 7, 2009• 87 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We report on a direct measurement of a phase shift on a weak coherent beam by a single 87Rb atom in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer. By strongly focusing the probe mode to the location of the atom, a maximum phase shift of about 1 degree is observed experimentally.
DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.103.153601

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In order to observe substantial interaction between single atoms and photons, cavities with a high finesse can be used to enhance the field at the location of an atom. Alternatively, an attempt can be made to tailor the spatial mode of a photon to closely match the mode corresponding to an electrical dipole transition of an atom by strong focusing [1]. In this paper, we present our experimental work on measurements of extinction and phase shift of a weak coherent beam due to the presence of an atom in the strongly focused part of a Gaussian light beam.
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