Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Bulletin of the American Physical Society

A portable ultrasensitive atomic magnetometer for biomagnetic measurements

Robert Wyllie, Zhimin Li, Ronald T. Wakai, Nicholas Proite, Peter Cook, Thad G Walker

Published Jun 6, 2007• 0 citations
OpenAlex

Related papers

Progress in Biomagnetic Signal Measurements with Ultra-Sensitive Atomic Magnetometers

王晓飞 Wang Xiaofei, 孙献平 Sun Xianping, 赵修超 Zhao Xiuchao +3 more

Chinese Journal of Lasers•Jan 1, 2018•3 citations

Ultrasensitive magnetometer using a single atom

Christof Wunderlich

Bulletin of the American Physical Society•Jun 7, 2017•0 citations

Integrated optical rotation detection scheme for chip-scale atomic magnetometer empowered by silicon-rich SiNx metalens

Jinsheng Hu, Zihua Liang, Peng Zhou +4 more

High-performance atomic magnetometers (AMs) rely on the measurement of optical rotation, which requires a set of bulky polarization optics that limit their applications in scenarios where portability and compactness are necessary. In this study, a miniaturized AM is constructed based on a cubic 87 Rb vapor cell and monolithic metalens, which provides an integrated scheme to achieve optical rotation detection induced by the circular birefringence of polarized atoms. The designed metalens achieves polarization splitting with deflection angles of ±10 ∘ and focusing with efficiencies of approximately 30% for orthogonal linear polarizations. The sensitivity of our compact device is ∼30 fT/Hz 1/2 with a dynamic range of around ±1.45 nT. We envision that the presented approach paves the way for the chip integration of emerging atomic devices, which are in demand for applications such as biomagnetic imaging and portable atomic gyroscopes.

Optics Letters•May 22, 2024•18 citations

Magnetic Resonance Based Atomic Magnetometers

Antoine Weis, G. Bison, Z. D. Grujić

Smart sensors, measurement and instrumentation•Sep 20, 2016•26 citations

Ultrasensitive SERF atomic magnetometer with a miniaturized hybrid vapor cell

Yintao Ma, Yao Chen, Mingzhi Yu +8 more

Abstract The chip-scale hybrid optical pumping spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) atomic magnetometer with a single-beam arrangement has prominent applications in biomagnetic measurements because of its outstanding features, including ultrahigh sensitivity, an enhanced signal-to-noise ratio, homogeneous spin polarization and a much simpler optical configuration than other devices. In this work, a miniaturized single-beam hybrid optical pumping SERF atomic magnetometer based on a microfabricated atomic vapor cell is demonstrated. Although the optically thin Cs atoms are spin-polarized, the dense Rb atoms determine the experimental results. The enhanced signal strength and narrowed resonance linewidth are experimentally proven, which shows the superiority of the proposed magnetometer scheme. By using a differential detection scheme, we effectively suppress optical noise with an approximate five-fold improvement. Moreover, the cell temperature markedly affects the performance of the magnetometer. We systematically investigate the effects of temperature on the magnetometer parameters. The theoretical basis for these effects is explained in detail. The developed miniaturized magnetometer has an optimal magnetic sensitivity of 20 fT/Hz 1/2 . The presented work provides a foundation for the chip-scale integration of ultrahighly sensitive quantum magnetometers that can be used for forward-looking magnetocardiography (MCG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) applications.

Microsystems & Nanoengineering•Aug 30, 2024•62 citations

Space-Variant Polarization Distribution Mitigates AC-Stark Shifts in a SERF Atomic Magnetometer

Zihua Liang, Tengyue Long, Lu Liu +5 more

Emerging biomagnetic imaging requires compact optical pumping magnetometer (OPM) arrays that enable high spatial resolution with remarkable sensitivity. In such devices, atomic pumping fundamentally depends on conventional optical systems, yet realizing diverse pumping modalities persists as a critical challenge─particularly in integrated applications. In this study, a space-variant polarization distribution (SPD) pumping source is achieved and integrated with an atomic magnetometer for the first time. Our method enables modification of optical polarization within a 3 × 3 × 3 mm 3 87 Rb micro-vapor cell to spatially separate the atomic pumping and detection regions, resulting in a 56% mean (75% maximum) reduction in the AC Stark effect compared with the conventional scheme. Experiment results demonstrate a 20.1 fT/Hz 1/2 sensitivity and a 52 Hz bandwidth with a dynamic response range of ±3 nT, which is comparable to the state-of-the-art chip-scale OPMs. By leveraging the SPD pumping method, various atomic devices with a diffusion-pumping scheme are able to achieve chip integration, which further paves the way for the development of high-spatial-resolution biomagnetism imaging and portable atomic sensing applications.

ACS Photonics•Apr 8, 2025•7 citations
High-performance atomic magnetometers (AMs) rely on the measurement of optical rotation, which requires a set of bulky polarization optics that limit their applications in scenarios where portability and compactness are necessary. In this study, a miniaturized AM is constructed based on a cubic 87 Rb vapor cell and monolithic metalens, which provides an integrated scheme to achieve optical rotation detection induced by the circular birefringence of polarized atoms. The designed metalens achieves polarization splitting with deflection angles of ±10 ∘ and focusing with efficiencies of approximately 30% for orthogonal linear polarizations. The sensitivity of our compact device is ∼30 fT/Hz 1/2 with a dynamic range of around ±1.45 nT. We envision that the presented approach paves the way for the chip integration of emerging atomic devices, which are in demand for applications such as biomagnetic imaging and portable atomic gyroscopes.
Abstract The chip-scale hybrid optical pumping spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) atomic magnetometer with a single-beam arrangement has prominent applications in biomagnetic measurements because of its outstanding features, including ultrahigh sensitivity, an enhanced signal-to-noise ratio, homogeneous spin polarization and a much simpler optical configuration than other devices. In this work, a miniaturized single-beam hybrid optical pumping SERF atomic magnetometer based on a microfabricated atomic vapor cell is demonstrated. Although the optically thin Cs atoms are spin-polarized, the dense Rb atoms determine the experimental results. The enhanced signal strength and narrowed resonance linewidth are experimentally proven, which shows the superiority of the proposed magnetometer scheme. By using a differential detection scheme, we effectively suppress optical noise with an approximate five-fold improvement. Moreover, the cell temperature markedly affects the performance of the magnetometer. We systematically investigate the effects of temperature on the magnetometer parameters. The theoretical basis for these effects is explained in detail. The developed miniaturized magnetometer has an optimal magnetic sensitivity of 20 fT/Hz 1/2 . The presented work provides a foundation for the chip-scale integration of ultrahighly sensitive quantum magnetometers that can be used for forward-looking magnetocardiography (MCG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) applications.
Emerging biomagnetic imaging requires compact optical pumping magnetometer (OPM) arrays that enable high spatial resolution with remarkable sensitivity. In such devices, atomic pumping fundamentally depends on conventional optical systems, yet realizing diverse pumping modalities persists as a critical challenge─particularly in integrated applications. In this study, a space-variant polarization distribution (SPD) pumping source is achieved and integrated with an atomic magnetometer for the first time. Our method enables modification of optical polarization within a 3 × 3 × 3 mm 3 87 Rb micro-vapor cell to spatially separate the atomic pumping and detection regions, resulting in a 56% mean (75% maximum) reduction in the AC Stark effect compared with the conventional scheme. Experiment results demonstrate a 20.1 fT/Hz 1/2 sensitivity and a 52 Hz bandwidth with a dynamic response range of ±3 nT, which is comparable to the state-of-the-art chip-scale OPMs. By leveraging the SPD pumping method, various atomic devices with a diffusion-pumping scheme are able to achieve chip integration, which further paves the way for the development of high-spatial-resolution biomagnetism imaging and portable atomic sensing applications.