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Journal of physics. A, Proceedings of the Physical Society. General

An exact analysis of spontaneous emission by a single two level atom in the rotating wave approximation II. Numerical results

S. Swain

Published Nov 1, 1972• 12 citations
Publisher

Abstract

For Pt. I see ibid. vol.5, p.1587(1972). The problem considered is that of spontaneous emission by a single, two level atom which interacts with N modes of the electromagnetic field in the electric dipole, rotating wave approximation. The equations derived in Pt. I are solved numerically for N = 4,5,10,11,20,21 and 201 to find the eigenvalues and various time dependent properties of the system. The connection between this approach and conventional Wigner-Weisskopf theory is discussed.

DOI
10.1088/0305-4470/5/11/008

Related papers

An exact analysis of spontaneous emission by a single two level atom in the rotating wave approximation. I. Analytic results

S. Swain

The problem of a single two level atom in its excited state, placed in a cavity in which no photons are present initially, and interacting with N modes of the electromagnetic field is solved exactly in the electric dipole, rotating wave approximation. Expressions for the energy eigenvalues and eigenvectors are derived, and an exact representation for the time dependent wavefunction of the system is given. These quantities are evaluated analytically for N=1,2 and 3, and the time dependent properties of the system for these values of N are investigated and discussed.

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A quantum model of N two-level atoms coupled by a single-mode radiation field under a restricted rotating-wave approximation is studied, assuming a dipole-interaction approximation and that the total number of excitations of the system is conserved. A solution is found for the case of spontaneous emission when the atoms are initially prepared in the state of complete inversion. This solution is valid for all times. A general solution of the model is also found for any initial configuration of the system, in the cases of both spontaneous and stimulated emission. This solution is in a closed form and valid for times tau < tau max .

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Simple and consistent spontaneous emission rate derivation with a physically justified frequency cutoff

Wojciech Górecki

The exact determination of the spontaneous emission coefficient for an excited atom is an extremely complex problem so various approximations are typically used. One of the most popular ones is the use of the dipole approximation of a two-level atom followed by rotating wave approximation (RWA). However, such an approach applied to the entire frequency spectrum results in the appearance of divergent integrals in the derivations, which are not treated rigorously in typical student textbooks. It is known from the literature that the introduction of cutoff for frequencies, justified by the finite size of the atom, may solve this problem. For didactic purposes, in this paper, we introduce a mathematically simple cutoff, which allows for a straightforward yet mathematically consistent rederivation of the Weisskopf-Wigner spontaneous emission rate (up to the small correction) within RWA. Importantly, this cutoff is not a mathematical trick to make calculations easier but is related to a real feature of the physical system, the neglect of which leads to inconsistency. More precise analysis demand going beyond RWA and dipole approximation.

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Virtual Photons, Causality and Atomic Dynamics in Spontaneous Emission

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The time-dependent electric energy density surrounding a two-level atom fixed at r = 0 is studied, the atom being taken in its excited state at t = 0 and the field being initially in the vacuum state. The atom-field coupling includes both rotating and counter-rotating terms. The energy density of the spontaneously emitted field in the rotating wave approximation is shown to behave non-causally, while in the presence of the complete coupling it is shown to vanish outside a sphere of radius r = ct centred on the atom. The deviations of atomic dynamics from the exponential Wigner-Weisskopf behaviour during spontaneous decay are shown to be deeply influenced by the counter-rotating terms. It is concluded that the virtual photons induced by the counter-rotating terms in the atom-field coupling are essential in order to ensure causality and cannot be neglected in any accurate treatment of spontaneous emission.

Journal of Modern Optics•Aug 1, 1990•23 citations
For Pt. I see ibid. vol.5, p.1587(1972). The problem considered is that of spontaneous emission by a single, two level atom which interacts with N modes of the electromagnetic field in the electric dipole, rotating wave approximation. The equations derived in Pt. I are solved numerically for N = 4,5,10,11,20,21 and 201 to find the eigenvalues and various time dependent properties of the system. The connection between this approach and conventional Wigner-Weisskopf theory is discussed.
The problem of a single two level atom in its excited state, placed in a cavity in which no photons are present initially, and interacting with N modes of the electromagnetic field is solved exactly in the electric dipole, rotating wave approximation. Expressions for the energy eigenvalues and eigenvectors are derived, and an exact representation for the time dependent wavefunction of the system is given. These quantities are evaluated analytically for N=1,2 and 3, and the time dependent properties of the system for these values of N are investigated and discussed.
For pt.I see ibid., vol.12, no.11, p.2205 (1979). A numerical analysis of the solution of the problem of the interaction of N atoms via the electromagnetic field is presented, using the analytical results of paper I. Several initial conditions are considered for the cases of both spontaneous and stimulated emission. Results show that there is an excellent agreement between the present work and previous numerical results (Walls and Baraka (1970)) in the super-radiant case, while there are differences when the system is initially prepared in the state of complete inversion. These differences are attributed to the restricted rotating-wave approximation, which is the starting assumption in the present work.
A quantum model of N two-level atoms coupled by a single-mode radiation field under a restricted rotating-wave approximation is studied, assuming a dipole-interaction approximation and that the total number of excitations of the system is conserved. A solution is found for the case of spontaneous emission when the atoms are initially prepared in the state of complete inversion. This solution is valid for all times. A general solution of the model is also found for any initial configuration of the system, in the cases of both spontaneous and stimulated emission. This solution is in a closed form and valid for times tau < tau max .
Spontaneous emission in dipole approximation is studied theoretically using both source-field theory and a Schrodinger picture approach. Using source-field theory we obtain formal equations for the Poynting vector and energy density without making the rotating wave approximation (RWA) and Weisskopf-Wigner approximation (WWA). The initial condition at t=0 is one in which the atom is in an excited state and the field in the vacuum state. The source-field expressions are evaluated within the the RWA and WWA and are found to satisfy Poynting's theorem. To explore the consequences of not making the RWA and WWA, the Poynting vector and energy density are calculated using perturbation theory. We use a Schrodinger picture approach and essentially reproduce and complement the results of Compagno, Passante, and Persico [J. Mod. Optics 37:8, 1377 (2007)] and those of Power and Thirunamachandran [Phys. Rev. A 45, 54 (1992)] obtained using a Heisenberg picture approach. The theory involves a sum over field mode frequencies and both finite cutoffs and convergence factors are used to carry out the sums. It is shown that the perturbation theory calculation leads to unphysical values for atomic state populations for all times when a sum over all field frequencies is taken, even if a convergence factor is used. It is also proved that the fields calculated using source-field theory always satisfy Poynting's theorem for ct not equal to R, where R is the distance from the atom.
The exact determination of the spontaneous emission coefficient for an excited atom is an extremely complex problem so various approximations are typically used. One of the most popular ones is the use of the dipole approximation of a two-level atom followed by rotating wave approximation (RWA). However, such an approach applied to the entire frequency spectrum results in the appearance of divergent integrals in the derivations, which are not treated rigorously in typical student textbooks. It is known from the literature that the introduction of cutoff for frequencies, justified by the finite size of the atom, may solve this problem. For didactic purposes, in this paper, we introduce a mathematically simple cutoff, which allows for a straightforward yet mathematically consistent rederivation of the Weisskopf-Wigner spontaneous emission rate (up to the small correction) within RWA. Importantly, this cutoff is not a mathematical trick to make calculations easier but is related to a real feature of the physical system, the neglect of which leads to inconsistency. More precise analysis demand going beyond RWA and dipole approximation.
The time-dependent electric energy density surrounding a two-level atom fixed at r = 0 is studied, the atom being taken in its excited state at t = 0 and the field being initially in the vacuum state. The atom-field coupling includes both rotating and counter-rotating terms. The energy density of the spontaneously emitted field in the rotating wave approximation is shown to behave non-causally, while in the presence of the complete coupling it is shown to vanish outside a sphere of radius r = ct centred on the atom. The deviations of atomic dynamics from the exponential Wigner-Weisskopf behaviour during spontaneous decay are shown to be deeply influenced by the counter-rotating terms. It is concluded that the virtual photons induced by the counter-rotating terms in the atom-field coupling are essential in order to ensure causality and cannot be neglected in any accurate treatment of spontaneous emission.