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arXiv:1202.1972 · Physical Review A

Subnatural linewidths in two-photon excited-state spectroscopy

Монсит Танаситтикосол, C. Carr, Charles S. Adams, Kevin J. Weatherill

Published Mar 26, 2012• 28 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We investigate, theoretically and experimentally, absorption on an excited-state atomic transition in a thermal vapor where the lower state is coherently pumped. We find that the transition linewidth can be subnatural, that is, less than the combined linewidth of the lower and upper state. For the specific case of the $6{P}_{3/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}7{S}_{1/2}$ transition in room temperature cesium vapor, we measure a minimum linewidth of 6.6 MHz compared with the natural width of 8.5 MHz. Using perturbation techniques, an expression for the complex susceptibility is obtained which provides excellent agreement with the measured spectra.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.85.033830

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We investigate, theoretically and experimentally, absorption on an excited-state atomic transition in a thermal vapor where the lower state is coherently pumped. We find that the transition linewidth can be subnatural, that is, less than the combined linewidth of the lower and upper state. For the specific case of the 6P3/2\ensuremath→7S1/26{P}_{3/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}7{S}_{1/2}6P3/2​\ensuremath→7S1/2​ transition in room temperature cesium vapor, we measure a minimum linewidth of 6.6 MHz compared with the natural width of 8.5 MHz. Using perturbation techniques, an expression for the complex susceptibility is obtained which provides excellent agreement with the measured spectra.
We demonstrate two ways of obtaining subnatural linewidth for probe absorption through room-temperature Rb vapor. Both techniques use a control laser that drives the transition from a different ground state. The coherent drive splits the excited state into two dressed states (Autler-Townes doublet), which have asymmetric linewidths when the control laser is detuned from resonance. In the first technique, the laser has a large detuning of 1.18 GHz to reduce the linewidth to 5.1 MHz from the Doppler width of 560 MHz. In the second technique, we use a counterpropagating pump beam to eliminate the first-order Doppler effect. The unperturbed probe linewidth is about 13 MHz, which is reduced below 3 MHz $(0.5\ensuremath{\Gamma})$ at a detuning of 11.5 MHz.
Recently, Narducci et al.1 studied V-configuration three-level atoms and predicted that quantum fluctuations associated with a "strong" optical transition driven by a coherent field can be stabilized through excitation of a coupled "weak" transition. This stabilization is manifest in a narrowing, to subnatural values, of the fluorescence linewidths associated with the strong transition as the weak transition is driven more and more strongly. We have experimentally investigated this problem and provide the first demonstration of the effect. In the experiment, a beam of Ba atoms was intercepted by two copropagating cw laser beams. One of the beams, of Rabi frequency Ω1, was tuned into resonance with the strong, 553.5 nm, 1S0→3P1 transition, while the other beam, of Rabi frequency Ω2, was tuned into resonance with the weak, 791.1 nm, 1S0→3P1 transition. The fluorescence spectrum of the strong transition was recorded for the case when Ω1≈35 MHz and Q2≈45 MHz and, it was found that the spectrum was three-peaked. Most interestingly, the measured linewidth (FWHM) for the central peak was 16 MHz, or 2 MHz less than the 18 MHz natural width of the strong transition even before the substantial instrumental broadening (≈8 MHz) of the peak was deconvolved.
We report an observation of the subnatural-linewidth spectroscopy in cold 6Li^{6}\mathrm{Li}6Li atoms by combining the interference contrast method and the time-delayed coincidence technique. The measured linewidth of D1{D}_{1}D1​ lines is as narrow as 3.6 MHz, which is well below its natural linewidth of 5.8 MHz. The hyperfine splitting of the 2P1/22{P}_{1/2}2P1/2​ state is measured as 26.112(20) MHz with this subnatural-linewidth spectroscopy. The transitions of the D2{D}_{2}D2​ lines are partially resolved by using the developed technique. The time-delayed coincidence technique based on the interference contrast method in cold atoms provides a route for robust fluorescence measurements and determination of unresolved transitions.
We demonstrate polarization spectroscopy of an excited state transition in room temperature cesium vapor. An anisotropy induced by a circularly polarized pump beam on the D2 transition is observed using a weak probe on the 6P3/2 to 7S1/2 transition. When the D2 transition is saturated, a sub-natural linewidth feature is observed which theoretical modeling shows is enhanced by Doppler averaging. Polarization spectroscopy provides a simple modulation-free signal suitable for laser frequency stabilization to excited state transitions.
Coherent spectroscopy of degenerate two-level systems of the Doppler-broadened D2{D}_{2}D2​ cesium line has been performed in vacuum and in buffer gas cells. Subnatural-width (SNW) electromagnetically induced transparency and electromagnetically induced absorption (EIA) resonances have been observed with single-frequency laser excitation for different light polarizations and collision regimes. SNW-EIA resonances with linearly polarized excitation of the Fg=4{F}_{g}=4Fg​=4 level are observed, and they increase their contrast with power density increase and reach a contrast of 20% at $200 \mathrm{mW}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}2}.$ A theoretical model has been elaborated, taking into account the Doppler broadening of the transitions, the linewidth of the laser light, and the experimental conditions for observation of the fluorescence. Here the theoretical results are in agreement with those of the experiment. In a buffer gas cell, the SNW resonances in the fluorescence, in degenerate two-level systems are observed for the first time and they are only obtained with circularly polarized light. A theoretical explanation of this result is proposed. At the expense of contrast, in the presence of a buffer gas the coherent resonances are significantly narrower than in a vacuum cell for the same power density. The observation of SNW resonances in buffer gas is significantly less sensitive to the laser frequency drift than in a vacuum cell, which could be advantageous for applications in metrology and in the measurement of weak magnetic fields.
We demonstrate a simple technique to lock the frequency of a laser to an atomic transition with a new technique of subnatural linewidth spectroscopy. The coupled rubidium system exhibits an enhanced absorption spectrum of the probe beam with a subnatural linewidth. Compared with other techniques with an additional laser, our scheme only utilizes a single laser, which will be locked. The observed spectroscopic linewidth is down to about 3.5 MHz. The laser frequency fluctuation is about 226 kHz after locking on. The demonstrated scheme offers a convenient and low-cost technique for laser frequency stabilization and related precision measurements.