Two-dimensional imaging of electromagnetic fields via light-sheet fluorescence imaging with Rydberg atoms

Abstract

Imaging of electric and magnetic fields is limited by the fact that conventional field probes rely on conductive elements that perturb the fields they are meant to measure and require either spatial scanning or arrays to produce field maps. Atomic sensors based on Rydberg states offer a minimally invasive and broadband alternative, enabling absolute field measurements without external calibration. In this work, we present a field imaging technique that combines the spatial resolution of planar laser-induced fluorescence-dip spectroscopy with the field sensitivity and spectral resolution of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) using Rydberg states of atomic vapor. By imaging the change in fluorescence due to EIT, we spatially resolve the field-induced shifts in atomic energy levels, enabling the imaging of arbitrary electric field distributions from MHz to tens of GHz at the ∼V/cm level and static magnetic fields at the ∼mT level. We also image resonant microwave electric fields at the ∼5 mV/cm level. This technique achieves a spatial resolution of 160 µm, limited by our camera, with a fundamental resolution limit near 5 µm.