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arXiv:1802.10343 · Physical Review A

Detection of ultracold molecules using an optical cavity

Rahul Sawant, Olivier Dulieu, S. A. Rangwala

Published Jun 11, 2018• 10 citations
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Abstract

We theoretically study nondestructive detection of ultracold molecules, using a Fabry-P\'erot cavity. Specifically, we consider vacuum Rabi splitting where we demonstrate the use of collective strong coupling for detection of molecules with many participating energy levels. We also consider electromagnetically induced transparency and transient response of light for the molecules interacting with a Fabry-P\'erot cavity mode, as a means for nondestructive detection. We identify the parameters required for the detection of molecules in the cavity using electromagnetically induced transparency. The theoretical analysis for these processes is parametrized with realistic values of both the molecule and the cavity. For each process, we quantify the state occupancy of the molecules interacting with the cavity and determine to what extent the population does not change during a detection cycle.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.97.063405

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The photoassociation (PA) of a rubidium dimer in a dark magneto-optical trap (MOT) is studied using atom-cavity collective strong coupling. This allows nondestructive detection of the molecule formation process as well as rapid and repeated interrogation of the atom-molecule system. The vacuum Rabi splitting (VRS) measurements from the bright MOT are carefully calibrated against equivalent measurements with fluorescence. Further loading rates in the dark MOT are determined using VRS. This method provides a reliable, fast, and nondestructive detection scheme for detecting the PA using the free atoms coupled to a cavity when the atoms are in a nonfluorescing state.
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Ultracold ground-state molecules can be formed from ultracold atoms via photoassociation followed by a spontaneous emission process. Typically, the molecular products are distributed over a range of final states. Here, we propose to use an optical cavity with high cooperativity to selectively enhance the population of a pre-determined final state by controlling the spontaneous emission. During this process, a photon will be emitted into the cavity mode. Detection of this photon heralds a single reaction. We discuss the efficiency and the dynamics of cavity-assisted molecule formation in the frame of realistic parameters that can be achieved in current ultracold-atom setups. In particular, we consider the production of Rb 2 molecules in the a 3 Σ u triplet ground state. Moreover, when working with more than two atoms in the cavity, collective enhancement effects in chemistry should be observable.
The photoassociation (PA) of rubidium dimer (Rb2) in a dark magneto-optic trap (MOT) is studied using atom-cavity collective strong coupling. This allows non-destructive detection of the molecule formation process as well as rapid and repeated interrogation of the atom-molecule system. The vacuum Rabi splitting (VRS) measurements from the bright MOT are carefully calibrated against equivalent measurements with fluorescence. Further loading rates in dark MOT are determined using VRS. This method provides a reliable, fast, and non-destructive detection scheme for ultracold molecules when the atoms are non-fluorescing using the free atoms coupled to a cavity.
We experimentally demonstrate collective strong coupling, optical bi-stability (OB), and all-optical switching in a system consisting of ultracold 85Rb atoms, trapped in a dark magneto-optical trap (DMOT), and coupled to an optical Fabry-Perot cavity. The strong coupling is established by measuring the vacuum Rabi splitting (VRS) of a weak on-axis probe beam. The dependence of VRS on the probe beam power is measured, and bi-stability in the cavity transmission is observed. We demonstrate control over the transmission of the probe beam through the atom-cavity system using a free-space off-axis control beam and show that the cavity transmission can be switched on and off in micro-second timescales using micro-Watt control powers. The utility of the system as a tool for sensitive, in-situ and rapid measurements is envisaged.