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arXiv:2408.00988 · Optics Express

Measurement of microwave polarization using two polarization orthogonal local microwave electric fields in a Rydberg atom-based mixer

Weibo Yin, Jianan Zhang, Feng-Dong Jia, Yuhan Wang, Yuxiang Wang, Jianhai Hao, Yue Cui, Ya Liu, Zhiping Zhong

Published Sep 23, 2024• 11 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We propose and demonstrate what we believe to be a novel method for measuring the polarization direction of a microwave electric field in a single measurement using a Rydberg atom-based mixer with two orthogonally polarized local microwave electric fields. This approach eliminates the need for physical rotation of the local field, allowing the polarization angle of the signal field to be determined directly by measuring the ratio of the two beat signals. Furthermore, introducing a weak static magnetic field enables the utilization of the Zeeman effect and exploitation of polarization asymmetry. This distinction allows for determining the polarization direction of the microwave field is θ or 180° - θ within the 0 to 180-degree range. The capability to measure microwave polarization in real-time across this range is very valuable for applications in microwave sensing and information transmission.

DOI
10.1364/oe.538440

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We propose and demonstrate what we believe to be a novel method for measuring the polarization direction of a microwave electric field in a single measurement using a Rydberg atom-based mixer with two orthogonally polarized local microwave electric fields. This approach eliminates the need for physical rotation of the local field, allowing the polarization angle of the signal field to be determined directly by measuring the ratio of the two beat signals. Furthermore, introducing a weak static magnetic field enables the utilization of the Zeeman effect and exploitation of polarization asymmetry. This distinction allows for determining the polarization direction of the microwave field is θ or 180° - θ within the 0 to 180-degree range. The capability to measure microwave polarization in real-time across this range is very valuable for applications in microwave sensing and information transmission.
A Rydberg atom-based mixer has opened up a new method to characterize microwave electric fields such as the precise measurement of their phase and strength. This study further demonstrates, theoretically and experimentally, a method to accurately measure the polarization of a microwave electric field based on a Rydberg atom-based mixer. The results show that the amplitude of the beat note changes with the polarization of the microwave electric field in a period of 180 degrees, and in the linear region a polarization resolution better than 0.5 degree can be easily obtained which reaches the best level by a Rydberg atomic sensor. More interestingly, the mixer-based measurements are immune to the polarization of the light field that forms the Rydberg EIT. This method considerably simplifies theoretical analysis and the experimental system required for measuring microwave polarization using Rydberg atoms and is of interest in microwave sensing.
Atoms form the basis of precise measurement for many quantities (time, acceleration, rotation, magnetic field, etc.). Measurements of microwave frequency electric fields by traditional methods (i.e. engineered antennas) have limited sensitivity and can be difficult to calibrate properly. Highly-excited (Rydberg) neutral atoms have very large electric-dipole moments and many dipole allowed transitions in the range of 1 - 500 GHz. It is possible to sensitively probe the electric field in this range using the combination of two quantum interference phenomena: electromagnetically induced transparency and the Autler-Townes effect. This technique allows for very sensitive field amplitude, polarization, and sub-wavelength imaging measurements. These quantities can be extracted by measuring properties of a probe laser beam as it passes through a warm rubidium vapor cell. Thus far, Rydberg microwave electrometry has relied upon the absorption of the probe laser. We report on our use of polarization rotation, which corresponds to the real part of the susceptibility, for measuring the properties of microwave frequency electric fields. Our simulations show that when a magnetic field is present and directed along the optical propagation direction a polarization rotation signal exists and can be used for microwave electrometry. One central advantage in using the polarization rotation signal rather than the absorption signal is that common mode laser noise is naturally eliminated leading to a potentially dramatic increase in signal-to-noise ratio.
A scheme of grating-assisted full-field (0°–180°) microwave (MW) polarization measurement is theoretically proposed using a Rydberg-atom mixer via electromagnetically induced transparency in the absence of a magnetic field. The probe spectrum reads out the mixed MW signal and is modulated by an optical grating. It is found that the multi-slit interference leads to the enhancement of the grating spectrum, which substantially enhances the distinguishability of MW polarization. The simulation result shows that the minimum resolvable polarization angle is about 0.04°, and the ratio of bandwidth-angle resolution is introduced to improve polarization measurement. Moreover, the MW field strength and the phase difference between local and signal MW fields could affect the symmetry of the grating spectrum, which helps to determine the polarization angles of the MW field from 0° to 180° without the aid of magnetic fields.
Abstract Microwave phase detection is an essential technique in antenna metrology, radar, and communications. The Rydberg atom-based mixer has been successful in the measurement of the phase of a signal microwave field by creating a beat in the presence of a local microwave field, in which the phase information is transferred into the phase of the beat. In this study, we extend the function of the Rydberg atom-based mixer by adding alternating current Zeeman modulation, and find that the phase information is transferred into the amplitude of the beat, not only its phase. As the results, the phase information can be measured simply and real-time. The results show that another ‘dimension’ operation can be introduced into the Rydberg atom-based mixer to expand the functions and applications of the mixer, which is very useful for future real-time sensing applications. An experiment involving real-time measurement and phase-modulated digital communication based on the beat+Zeeman method is presented.
We provide the simultaneous traceable measurements of microwave electric fields at two different frequencies by the electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) and Autler–Townes (AT) splitting. A static magnetic field working together with a linearly polarized probe and coupling light prepares Rydberg atoms in Zeeman sublevels with maximal |mJ| in an atomic vapor cell. Using the EIT-AT splitting of these two maximal |mJ| states, the microwave electric fields at two different frequencies are simultaneously measured, in which their frequency difference can be adjustable within the linear range of magnetic field-induced level shifts. The proposed method provides a promising prospect for calibrating multiple microwave frequencies simultaneously in the future.
Experimental results of studying the spectrum of the microwave 37 P -37 S transition of Rydberg sodium atoms in a weak magnetic field (≤7 G) are reported. The populations of the Rydberg states were measured using the method of selective ionization with a pulsed electric field. When the magnetic field was parallel to the ionizing electric field, a good agreement between the calculated and experimental spectral shapes was observed, making it possible to determine the unknown polarization of the microwave radiation. In the case of the orthogonal configuration of the fields, the resonance structure was suppressed in the field ionization signals due to the strong influence of the magnetic field on the electron trajectories in the detection system.