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Chinese Optics Letters

Polarization spectra of Rb atoms and their application in laser frequency stabilization

Kaijun Jiang, Jin Wang, X.H. Tu, Ming He, Mingsheng Zhan

Published Jul 20, 2003• 6 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

Polarization spectra of rubidium atoms were investigated with different uncrossed angles between the polarizer and the analyzer. The variation of the spectra was derived theoretically as a function of arbitrary angle, and measured experimentally for different angles. The spectral profile of D_(2) line of rubidium was further used to stabilize the frequency of a diode laser. It was demonstrated that the laser linewidth was reduced to 2 MHz.

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Polarization spectra of Rb atoms and their application in laser frequency stabilization

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Polarization spectra of rubidium atoms were investigated with different uncrossed angles between thepolarizer and the analyzer. The variation of the spectra was derived theoretically as a function of arbitraryangle, and measured experimentally for different angles. The spectral profile of D2 line of rubidium wasfurther used to stabilize the frequency of a diode laser. It was demonstrated that the laser linewidth wasreduced to 2 MHz.

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Studies of rubidium number density and polarization using spectrally-broadened diode lasers

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We have made systematic studies of rubidium (Rb) number density and polarization with the purpose of comparing a variety of techniques used to make these measurements. We have used five different temperatures, 40°C to 100°C in 15° increments, to compare number density measurements made using optical absorption with those made using Faraday rotation. A diode laser operating in the region near the Rb D1 transition was used in the case of the former, while for the latter two different lasers were used, one each operating in the vicinity of the Rb D1 and D2 transitions. These number density results are compared with those obtained from vapor temperature formulae (e.g., Killian, CRC, etc.). We have also made a systematic study of Rb optical pumping using an amplified tunable diode laser which has been incrementally broadened in order to determine the effect of linewidth broadening on Rb polarization. We vary the frequency of the circularly-polarized pump laser across the D1 transition absorption profile for each of four linewidths (0.01, 0.5, 2, and 8 GHz) and measure the Rb polarization using Faraday rotation. The Rb number density for these measurements is on the order of 1012 cm−3, with 1 Torr of N2 as the buffer gas. These results are then compared with polarization measurements taken using a re-pump laser operating near the Rb D2 transition, and with theoretical calculations of the rubidium polarization.

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We observed saturated absorption spectra of the 87Rb atom under a magnetic field of several millitesla with a diode laser oscillating at 780 nm. The spectra were compared with the theoretical ones obtained on the basis of Nakayama's four-level model. We numerically computed Zeeman splittings of the 52 P 3/2 excited state of the atom. As the magnetic field increased to 5 mT, the absorption peak of the F=2→F'=3 transition shifted almost linearly up to about 62 MHz. The shift direction was reversed by changing the polarization combination of the pump and probe lasers. The measured frequency stability, when the laser was locked at the absorption peak, was better than σy(τ)= 1 ×10-11τ-1/2 for the sampling time of 0.01 s≤τ≤10 s.

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In a spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) atomic magnetometer, the pump and probe laser frequencies are tuned to the D 1 transition line of alkali metal atoms to enhance measurement sensitivity. The D 1 line, a non-cycling transition, exhibits a low absorption coefficient. This study theoretically analyzes the influence of different parameters on the absorption coefficient of the D 1 line and proposes a polarization-dependent approach to enhance it. A frequency stabilization method based on modulation transfer spectroscopy (MTS) with an enhanced absorption coefficient is introduced. Compared with the conventional method, optimizing the probe beam’s polarization increases the absorption coefficient, raising the amplitude of the MTS signal. The results show that using a stronger MTS signal for frequency stabilization reduces the laser's frequency noise. Using heterodyne measurement, we characterize the linewidth-narrowing effect of MTS locking and evaluate the frequency stability of the locked laser. The linewidth of each laser is reduced from the free-running 2.2 MHz to 885 kHz after MTS stabilization. The Allan deviation measurements of the beat signal between two locked lasers are 2.6 × 10 −11 / τ . This work provides a stable optical frequency reference for SERF atomic magnetometers and offers potential applications in extracting spatial information from optically pumped atoms.

Optics Express•May 16, 2025•5 citations
Polarization spectra of rubidium atoms were investigated with different uncrossed angles between the polarizer and the analyzer. The variation of the spectra was derived theoretically as a function of arbitrary angle, and measured experimentally for different angles. The spectral profile of D_(2) line of rubidium was further used to stabilize the frequency of a diode laser. It was demonstrated that the laser linewidth was reduced to 2 MHz.
We have made systematic studies of rubidium (Rb) number density and polarization with the purpose of comparing a variety of techniques used to make these measurements. We have used five different temperatures, 40°C to 100°C in 15° increments, to compare number density measurements made using optical absorption with those made using Faraday rotation. A diode laser operating in the region near the Rb D1 transition was used in the case of the former, while for the latter two different lasers were used, one each operating in the vicinity of the Rb D1 and D2 transitions. These number density results are compared with those obtained from vapor temperature formulae (e.g., Killian, CRC, etc.). We have also made a systematic study of Rb optical pumping using an amplified tunable diode laser which has been incrementally broadened in order to determine the effect of linewidth broadening on Rb polarization. We vary the frequency of the circularly-polarized pump laser across the D1 transition absorption profile for each of four linewidths (0.01, 0.5, 2, and 8 GHz) and measure the Rb polarization using Faraday rotation. The Rb number density for these measurements is on the order of 1012 cm−3, with 1 Torr of N2 as the buffer gas. These results are then compared with polarization measurements taken using a re-pump laser operating near the Rb D2 transition, and with theoretical calculations of the rubidium polarization.
Abstract We present a theoretical and experimental study of the polarization rotation of a linearly polarized probe beam scanning across all of the neighboring hyperfine levels ( F e = 1 and 2) with a circularly polarized pumping beam resonant on the F g = 2 → F e = 3 transition of the D2 line of 87 Rb atoms. The experimental results match well with the results calculated from the full-level density matrix equations considering laser phase noise, which hinders observations of narrow lines with linewidths of ∼90 kHz, as calculated in polarization rotation spectra for the first time.
We observed saturated absorption spectra of the 87Rb atom under a magnetic field of several millitesla with a diode laser oscillating at 780 nm. The spectra were compared with the theoretical ones obtained on the basis of Nakayama's four-level model. We numerically computed Zeeman splittings of the 52 P 3/2 excited state of the atom. As the magnetic field increased to 5 mT, the absorption peak of the F=2→F'=3 transition shifted almost linearly up to about 62 MHz. The shift direction was reversed by changing the polarization combination of the pump and probe lasers. The measured frequency stability, when the laser was locked at the absorption peak, was better than σy(τ)= 1 ×10-11τ-1/2 for the sampling time of 0.01 s≤τ≤10 s.
The Rubidium saturated absorption spectra for D 2 transition lines are used to measure the Fabry-Perot interferometer free spectral range (FSR). The scale linearity of the laser frequency tuning is determined. The Sagnac interferometer has been used for the laser stabilization. The result shows that the laser frequency is stabilized upto sub-mega Herz level. Also the hyperfine structure [5 2 S 1/2 F = 3 → F′ = 2, 3, 4 5 2 P 3/2 85 Rb] of the rubidium atom has been measured by using the tilt locking method, which shows the same result as the conventional saturation spectroscopy.
In a spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) atomic magnetometer, the pump and probe laser frequencies are tuned to the D 1 transition line of alkali metal atoms to enhance measurement sensitivity. The D 1 line, a non-cycling transition, exhibits a low absorption coefficient. This study theoretically analyzes the influence of different parameters on the absorption coefficient of the D 1 line and proposes a polarization-dependent approach to enhance it. A frequency stabilization method based on modulation transfer spectroscopy (MTS) with an enhanced absorption coefficient is introduced. Compared with the conventional method, optimizing the probe beam’s polarization increases the absorption coefficient, raising the amplitude of the MTS signal. The results show that using a stronger MTS signal for frequency stabilization reduces the laser's frequency noise. Using heterodyne measurement, we characterize the linewidth-narrowing effect of MTS locking and evaluate the frequency stability of the locked laser. The linewidth of each laser is reduced from the free-running 2.2 MHz to 885 kHz after MTS stabilization. The Allan deviation measurements of the beat signal between two locked lasers are 2.6 × 10 −11 / τ . This work provides a stable optical frequency reference for SERF atomic magnetometers and offers potential applications in extracting spatial information from optically pumped atoms.