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GAMMA-RAY OPTICS OF MULTI-BEAM BORRMANN MODES WITH POSSIBLE APPLICATIONS TO NUCLEAR LASING

J. T. Hutton

Published Jan 1, 1986• 3 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

There is a possibility that an isomer can be found which could be used to obtain a sufficient population inversion density to bring about nuclear lasing. If it can be realized, a gamma ray laser ("graser") will be a new source of radiation in the $\\sim$ 1A region of unexcelled spectral brightness and coherence, and can be expected to have revolutionary consequences for physics, biology, and chemistry. The result of our research is that the effects of crystallinity are of crucial importance in considerations regarding gamma-ray lasers, bringing in new elements to laser theory which could very well prove decisive in determining whether grasing can or cannot be achieved.\nCertain multi-beam Borrmann eigenmodes of the radiation field in a perfect crystal have much stronger coupling to the emitting nuclei, and much less photoabsorption, than modes in the amorphous case. These modes may be selectively fed by nuclear transitions of the proper multipolarity. A crystal containing such emitters would require orders of magnitude less population inversion density in order to lase than would an amorphous sample of similar material.\nMulti-beam Borrmann modes also have several applications to single-photon optics, particularly the problem of anomalous emission of a $\\gamma$-ray by an internal source of multipolarity M1 or higher. While this effect can occur for a 2-beam Borrmann mode, even stronger anomalous emission is possible into multi-beam Borrmann modes. In addition, certain multi-beam Borrmann modes can anomalously transmit resonant radiation through a Mossbauer crystal. (This cannot occur for the 2-beam modes, except for the case of an E1 transition, since the Borrmann mode couples strongly to the nuclei and thus will be strongly absorbed at resonance.)

Related papers

Multibeam Borrmann effect in crystalline gamma-ray lasers

J. T. Hutton, G. T. Trammell, J. P. Hannon

The effects of crystallinity are of crucial importance in considerations regarding gamma-ray lasers, bringing in new elements of laser theory which could well prove decisive in determining whether lasing can or cannot be achieved. Certain multibeam Borrmann eigenmodes of the radiation field within a perfect crystal containing resonant Mossbauer nuclei exhibit much less photoabsorption and much stronger coupling to the nuclei (provided the nuclear transition is of multipolarity M1 or higher) than do the single plane wave channels of an amorphous system (or equivalently, off-Bragg in the crystal). These modes offer the possibility of achieving lasing with orders of magnitude less population inversion density than would otherwise be the case, provided a nondestructive means is found to achieve a population inversion. The radiation in these modes would emerge from the crystal in a number of well-defined beams, each collimated by Bragg diffraction to an angular divergence of from 10-5to 10-4 rad. The properties of these multibeam modes as they relate to gamma-ray lasers, as well as the effects of crystallinity on the optics of systems which decay by superradiant rather than stimulate demission, are discussed.

International Laser Science Conference•Jan 1, 1986•0 citations

Multibeam Borrmann modes and crystallineγ-ray lasers

J. T. Hutton, J. P. Hannon, G. T. Trammell

We have previously shown that two-beam Borrmann modes of good single M\"ossbauer crystals offer the possibility of achieving nuclear lasing at population-inversion densities substantially lower than would be required in an amorphous sample of the same material [J. T. Hutton, J. P. Hannon, and G. T. Trammell, Phys. Rev. A 37, 4269 (1988)]. In this paper we discuss the further improvements which are obtained in multibeam Borrmann modes (which consist of the coherent superposition of three or more plane waves within the crystal). These modes can have smaller absorption coefficients, and more importantly, stronger coupling to the nuclei, as well as sharper collimation than do corresponding two-beam modes, leading to even lower requirements for the population-inversion density needed to induce lasing.

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The evolution of the foreign and native search for solving the problem of a nuclear gamma-ray laser (NGL), which has been attracting attention for almost half a century despite the absence at present of any convincing data about its experimental solution, is considered. It is shown that the key conflict inherent in any conception of the NGL is the antagonism between the necessity to accumulate a sufficient amount of excited nuclei and the requirement to narrow down the emission gamma-ray line to its natural radiative width. The critical analysis of different approaches for solving this conflict (Mössbauer scheme, deeply cooled ensembles of free nuclei with the hidden inversion, nuclear inversionless amplification, two-quantum gamma emission in counterpropagating photon beams, hypothetical amplifying medium of long-lived isomers in a Bose—Einstein condensate) shows that this search is important not only due to the expected result, which could stimulate the development of quantum nucleonics as a new branch in physics, but also is of interest due to a variety of physical disciplines and experimental approaches used in this search.

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Resolution of gamma-ray laser dilemma

Olga A. Kocharovskaya, Roman L. Kolesov, Yuri V. Rostovtsev

Summary form only given. The gamma-ray laser dilemma states that incoherent pump required to produce a population inversion would unavoidable destroy the conditions of the Mossbauer and Borrmann effects which are crucial for realization of the net gain. For four decades this dilemma prevailed all over the researches on gamma-ray lasers, making hopeless any attempt to approach a problem of gamma-ray laser. Recently it was shown that laser driving of bounded electronic transitions in atoms provides efficient manipulation by the Mossbauer spectra of nuclear transitions. Under certain conditions it leads to suppression of resonant absorption by 3-5 orders of magnitude reducing it up to the level of off-resonant losses in the host matrix. In turn, suppression of the resonant absorption reduces by the same amount the requirement for incoherent pump and accordingly heating of the active sample. This allows to pump active nuclei in the host lattice without destroying the conditions of both Mossbauer and Borrmann effects. Moreover it allows to pump resonantly at the operating transition that increases additionally the efficiency of the incoherent pump by 1-2 orders of magnitude. All together gamma-ray laser schemes involving laser driving of electronic transitions reduce the laser threshold by 4-7 orders of magnitude and hence suggest a completely new path for solution of the gamma-ray laser problem.

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Лев Абрамович Ривлин, Задерновский Анатолий Андреевич

Four basic schemes for a nuclear gamma-ray laser (NGL) are analyzed using the “NGL-hyper-bola” as a generalized comparative criterion: solid state Mössbauer scheme; stimulated gamma-emission in cooled ensembles of free nuclei with hidden population inversion of nuclear states; nuclear gamma-ray lasing without inversion; and Bose-Einstein condensate as a hypothetical active medium for NGL.

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Excitation of Nuclei and Atoms Trapping in Optical Fields of High Intensity

Anatoli Andreev

This report results from a contract tasking Moscow State University as follows: Exploration of methods to control the radiative gamma- processes in nuclei is currently one of the most promising investigation directions of the modern Quantum Nucleonics - a new realm of contemporary Physics which spreads the basic conceptual ideas and methods of optical Quantum Electronics of atoms and molecules to the gamma-ray range and atomic nuclei and even anti-particles. One of the most important problems in this field is the generation of coherent gamma-radiation by a Gamma-ray Lasing (GRL) process which makes use of excited nuclei as an amplifying medium. The most likely medium for gamma-ray lasers is an ensemble of metastable nuclear isomers, Direct excitation of these isomeric states by electrons or X-ray photons will also create a deeper understanding of nuclear structure and properties.

•Nov 1, 2006•0 citations
There is a possibility that an isomer can be found which could be used to obtain a sufficient population inversion density to bring about nuclear lasing. If it can be realized, a gamma ray laser ("graser") will be a new source of radiation in the sim\\simsim 1A region of unexcelled spectral brightness and coherence, and can be expected to have revolutionary consequences for physics, biology, and chemistry. The result of our research is that the effects of crystallinity are of crucial importance in considerations regarding gamma-ray lasers, bringing in new elements to laser theory which could very well prove decisive in determining whether grasing can or cannot be achieved.\nCertain multi-beam Borrmann eigenmodes of the radiation field in a perfect crystal have much stronger coupling to the emitting nuclei, and much less photoabsorption, than modes in the amorphous case. These modes may be selectively fed by nuclear transitions of the proper multipolarity. A crystal containing such emitters would require orders of magnitude less population inversion density in order to lase than would an amorphous sample of similar material.\nMulti-beam Borrmann modes also have several applications to single-photon optics, particularly the problem of anomalous emission of a gamma\\gammagamma-ray by an internal source of multipolarity M1 or higher. While this effect can occur for a 2-beam Borrmann mode, even stronger anomalous emission is possible into multi-beam Borrmann modes. In addition, certain multi-beam Borrmann modes can anomalously transmit resonant radiation through a Mossbauer crystal. (This cannot occur for the 2-beam modes, except for the case of an E1 transition, since the Borrmann mode couples strongly to the nuclei and thus will be strongly absorbed at resonance.)
The effects of crystallinity are of crucial importance in considerations regarding gamma-ray lasers, bringing in new elements of laser theory which could well prove decisive in determining whether lasing can or cannot be achieved. Certain multibeam Borrmann eigenmodes of the radiation field within a perfect crystal containing resonant Mossbauer nuclei exhibit much less photoabsorption and much stronger coupling to the nuclei (provided the nuclear transition is of multipolarity M1 or higher) than do the single plane wave channels of an amorphous system (or equivalently, off-Bragg in the crystal). These modes offer the possibility of achieving lasing with orders of magnitude less population inversion density than would otherwise be the case, provided a nondestructive means is found to achieve a population inversion. The radiation in these modes would emerge from the crystal in a number of well-defined beams, each collimated by Bragg diffraction to an angular divergence of from 10-5to 10-4 rad. The properties of these multibeam modes as they relate to gamma-ray lasers, as well as the effects of crystallinity on the optics of systems which decay by superradiant rather than stimulate demission, are discussed.
We have previously shown that two-beam Borrmann modes of good single M\"ossbauer crystals offer the possibility of achieving nuclear lasing at population-inversion densities substantially lower than would be required in an amorphous sample of the same material [J. T. Hutton, J. P. Hannon, and G. T. Trammell, Phys. Rev. A 37, 4269 (1988)]. In this paper we discuss the further improvements which are obtained in multibeam Borrmann modes (which consist of the coherent superposition of three or more plane waves within the crystal). These modes can have smaller absorption coefficients, and more importantly, stronger coupling to the nuclei, as well as sharper collimation than do corresponding two-beam modes, leading to even lower requirements for the population-inversion density needed to induce lasing.
The evolution of the foreign and native search for solving the problem of a nuclear gamma-ray laser (NGL), which has been attracting attention for almost half a century despite the absence at present of any convincing data about its experimental solution, is considered. It is shown that the key conflict inherent in any conception of the NGL is the antagonism between the necessity to accumulate a sufficient amount of excited nuclei and the requirement to narrow down the emission gamma-ray line to its natural radiative width. The critical analysis of different approaches for solving this conflict (Mössbauer scheme, deeply cooled ensembles of free nuclei with the hidden inversion, nuclear inversionless amplification, two-quantum gamma emission in counterpropagating photon beams, hypothetical amplifying medium of long-lived isomers in a Bose—Einstein condensate) shows that this search is important not only due to the expected result, which could stimulate the development of quantum nucleonics as a new branch in physics, but also is of interest due to a variety of physical disciplines and experimental approaches used in this search.
Summary form only given. The gamma-ray laser dilemma states that incoherent pump required to produce a population inversion would unavoidable destroy the conditions of the Mossbauer and Borrmann effects which are crucial for realization of the net gain. For four decades this dilemma prevailed all over the researches on gamma-ray lasers, making hopeless any attempt to approach a problem of gamma-ray laser. Recently it was shown that laser driving of bounded electronic transitions in atoms provides efficient manipulation by the Mossbauer spectra of nuclear transitions. Under certain conditions it leads to suppression of resonant absorption by 3-5 orders of magnitude reducing it up to the level of off-resonant losses in the host matrix. In turn, suppression of the resonant absorption reduces by the same amount the requirement for incoherent pump and accordingly heating of the active sample. This allows to pump active nuclei in the host lattice without destroying the conditions of both Mossbauer and Borrmann effects. Moreover it allows to pump resonantly at the operating transition that increases additionally the efficiency of the incoherent pump by 1-2 orders of magnitude. All together gamma-ray laser schemes involving laser driving of electronic transitions reduce the laser threshold by 4-7 orders of magnitude and hence suggest a completely new path for solution of the gamma-ray laser problem.
This report results from a contract tasking Moscow State University as follows: Exploration of methods to control the radiative gamma- processes in nuclei is currently one of the most promising investigation directions of the modern Quantum Nucleonics - a new realm of contemporary Physics which spreads the basic conceptual ideas and methods of optical Quantum Electronics of atoms and molecules to the gamma-ray range and atomic nuclei and even anti-particles. One of the most important problems in this field is the generation of coherent gamma-radiation by a Gamma-ray Lasing (GRL) process which makes use of excited nuclei as an amplifying medium. The most likely medium for gamma-ray lasers is an ensemble of metastable nuclear isomers, Direct excitation of these isomeric states by electrons or X-ray photons will also create a deeper understanding of nuclear structure and properties.