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Journal of Physics B Atomic and Molecular Physics

Inelastic atomic collisions in a laser field

Joel I. Gersten, Marvin H. Mittleman

Published Feb 21, 1976• 32 citations
Publisher

Abstract

A theoretical study of inelastic atomic collisions in the presence of a strong electromagnetic wave is made. In addition to the usual Landau-Zener collisional-coupling mechanism, there exists a radiative linkage between states. Valuable information concerning the diatomic system may be extracted by observing interference between the two processes. The possibility of employing null spectroscopy to relate the collisional and radiative coupling is discussed.

DOI
10.1088/0022-3700/9/3/006

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A theoretical study of inelastic atomic collisions in the presence of a strong electromagnetic wave is made. In addition to the usual Landau-Zener collisional-coupling mechanism, there exists a radiative linkage between states. Valuable information concerning the diatomic system may be extracted by observing interference between the two processes. The possibility of employing null spectroscopy to relate the collisional and radiative coupling is discussed.
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We extend the theory of light scattering from an atom undergoing collisions to the case of strong laser fields, where the expansion in powers of $\ensuremath{\Omega}{\ensuremath{\tau}}_{c}$ that was used formerly in a series of papers by Burnett et al. breaks down. In particular we consider in detail the conditions necessary to relate the observable quantities to intense-field collisional rate constants in a dressed-state basis (such as those calculated by Light and Sz\"oke). We also show (following Rabin and Ben-Reuven) that by studying the spectrum emitted by the atoms in the presence of a strong field one may measure the collisional rates for transfer between the dressed states of atom plus radiation field.
We report the observation of spontaneous radiative emission during the collision of two excited Ba atoms. The emission occurs at the sum energy of the excited atoms and is the emission analog of the laser-induced inelastic collision process. We measure a collision cross section for deexcitation by spontaneous radiative emission of 2.6\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}${10}^{\ensuremath{-}20}$ cm2{\mathrm{cm}}^{2}cm2.
Abstract : Work is summarized in areas of: Laser Assisted Collisions; Velocity Changing collisions in Atomic Vapors; Coherent Transients; Collision Induced Extra Resonances; Breakdown of the Optical Bloch Equations; Saturation Spectroscopy; Dynamics of Two-and Three-level Atoms Interacting with Radiation Fields; Pulse Propagation. Keywords: Laser spectroscopy, Optical collisions, Radiative collisions, Two-level atom, Atomic coherence, Degenerate four-wave mixing, Saturation spectroscopy, Laser propagation,, Dressed atom, Photon echo, Bloch equations, Collision kernal, Collisions, Optical noise.
An analysis is made of the spectrum of absorption of a weak probe electromagnetic by two-level atoms in a strong resonant laser field, undergoing collision with buffer gas atoms. The analysis is made using an approach that allows for the direct influence of a strong electromagnetic on the dynamics of an elastic collision between an active atom and a buffer gas atom. Rate equations are analyzed for a combined atom–strong electromagnetic field system (an atom dressed by the field) allowing for spontaneous and optical collisional transitions, and also for the interaction with the probe field. In the steady-state case, an expression is derived for the electric susceptibility of the medium at the small-signal frequency. This expression contains the rates of the optical collisional transitions that depend nontrivially on the parameters of the strong electromagnetic field. The phenomenological characteristics of optical collisional transitions generally used are only valid at low intensities and for small frequency detunings of the strong electromagnetic field, i.e., in the impact limit.