Time-Dependent Studies of Fundamental Atomic Processes in Rydberg Atoms

Yufeng Li, Dongmei Zhao, X. Ma +1 more

The autoionization mechanisms of dense n P 3/2 ( n = 20–97) Rydberg gases of 87 Rb atoms in the spontaneous evolution were investigated for the first time. By observing the characteristic time of the electrons generated through autoionization process, the dependence of autoionization mechanisms (black‐body radiation, electron–Rydberg collision, and Penning ionization) on the principal quantum number n of initial n P states was demonstrated. The dependence on the number n in n P Rydberg atoms is similar to those in n D Rydberg atoms.

Daniel Kleppner

Rachel Sapiro, Georg A. Raithel, David Alexander Anderson

Abstract We investigate the time dependence of atom-light and atom-RF field interactions in Rydberg electromagnetically-induced transparency (EIT) in a room-temperature and heated vapour cell. Quantum-optical transients are observed with rapid onset and dissolution of EIT induced by coupler-light pulses. The formulation and dissolution times of EIT, transient signals, and their dependencies on light intensities and Rydberg-atom density are studied. Simulations of pulsed EIT are performed by solving a time-dependent three-level master equation, whose results are in excellent agreement with experimental observations, including accurately reproducing quantum-optical transients observed at both onset and dissolution. We explore the time-dependent response of EIT to RF fields resonant with a Rydberg–Rydberg transition. An upper limit to the fundamental atom-RF field response time and instantaneous RF detection bandwidth with EIT-based sensors and receivers is established.

James Veale

Eugene Oks

Sagarika Basak, Yashwant Chougale, Rejish Nath

An array of single Rydberg atoms driven by a temporally modulated atom-field detuning is studied. The periodic modulation effectively modifies the Rabi coupling, leading to unprecedented dynamics in the presence of Rydberg-Rydberg interactions, in particular, blockade enhancement, antiblockades, and state-dependent population trapping. Interestingly, the Schrieffer-Wolf transformation reveals a fundamental process in Rydberg gases, correlated Rabi coupling, which stems from the extended nature of the Rydberg-Rydberg interactions. Also, the correlated coupling provides an alternative depiction for the Rydberg blockade, exhibiting a nontrivial behavior in the presence of periodic modulation. The dynamical localization of a many-body configuration in a driven Rydberg lattice is discussed.