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Physical Review Letters

New Mechanism for the Production of Optical Resonances with Subnatural Linewidths

Wojciech Gawlik, Joachim Kowalski, Frank N. Trager, Michael Vollmer

Published Mar 29, 1982• 24 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Optical resonances with subnatural linewidth as narrow as 2.6 MHz have been observed with excellent signal-to-noise ratio in the Na ${D}_{1}$ line (natural width 10 MHz) in a polarization spectroscopy experiment. The new, subnatural resonances arise from Zeeman coherences which are produced by a strong probe beam and destroyed by a velocity-selective optical Hanle effect.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.48.871

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Recently, Narducci et al.1 studied V-configuration three-level atoms and predicted that quantum fluctuations associated with a "strong" optical transition driven by a coherent field can be stabilized through excitation of a coupled "weak" transition. This stabilization is manifest in a narrowing, to subnatural values, of the fluorescence linewidths associated with the strong transition as the weak transition is driven more and more strongly. We have experimentally investigated this problem and provide the first demonstration of the effect. In the experiment, a beam of Ba atoms was intercepted by two copropagating cw laser beams. One of the beams, of Rabi frequency Ω1, was tuned into resonance with the strong, 553.5 nm, 1S0→3P1 transition, while the other beam, of Rabi frequency Ω2, was tuned into resonance with the weak, 791.1 nm, 1S0→3P1 transition. The fluorescence spectrum of the strong transition was recorded for the case when Ω1≈35 MHz and Q2≈45 MHz and, it was found that the spectrum was three-peaked. Most interestingly, the measured linewidth (FWHM) for the central peak was 16 MHz, or 2 MHz less than the 18 MHz natural width of the strong transition even before the substantial instrumental broadening (≈8 MHz) of the peak was deconvolved.

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Polarization spectroscopy within the natural width

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A method is suggested for obtaining narrow resonances within the natural width of the D1 line of sodium when the Zeeman degeneracy is lifted in the electric fields of two counterpropagating (antiparallel) differently polarized light beams.

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Polarization-rotation resonances with subnatural widths using a control laser

Sapam Ranjita Chanu, Kanhaiya Pandey, Vineet Bharti +2 more

We demonstrate extremely narrow resonances for polarization rotation in an atomic vapor. The resonances are created using a strong control laser on the same transition, which polarizes the atoms due to optical pumping among the magnetic sublevels. As the power in the control laser is increased, successively higher-order nested polarization-rotation resonances are created, with progressively narrower linewidths. We study these resonances in the D-2 line of Rb in a room temperature vapor cell, and demonstrate a width of 0.14 G for the third-order rotation. The physical basis for the observed resonances is that optical pumping results in a simplified. AV-type level structure with differential dressing of the levels by the control laser, which is why the control power has to be sufficiently high for each resonance to appear. This explanation is borne out by a density-matrix analysis of the system. The dispersive lineshape and subnatural width of the resonance lends itself naturally to applications such as laser locking to atomic transitions and precision measurements. Copyright (c) EPLA, 2014

•Jan 1, 2014•4 citations
Optical resonances with subnatural linewidth as narrow as 2.6 MHz have been observed with excellent signal-to-noise ratio in the Na D1{D}_{1}D1​ line (natural width 10 MHz) in a polarization spectroscopy experiment. The new, subnatural resonances arise from Zeeman coherences which are produced by a strong probe beam and destroyed by a velocity-selective optical Hanle effect.
Subnatural linewidth in the optical transitions of Na D2{D}_{2}D2​ lines was directly observed with use of phase switching of the optical field and gating of the photon counter. A linewidth as narrow as 4.5 MHz compared with the natural width of 10 MHz was obtained.
Recently, Narducci et al.1 studied V-configuration three-level atoms and predicted that quantum fluctuations associated with a "strong" optical transition driven by a coherent field can be stabilized through excitation of a coupled "weak" transition. This stabilization is manifest in a narrowing, to subnatural values, of the fluorescence linewidths associated with the strong transition as the weak transition is driven more and more strongly. We have experimentally investigated this problem and provide the first demonstration of the effect. In the experiment, a beam of Ba atoms was intercepted by two copropagating cw laser beams. One of the beams, of Rabi frequency Ω1, was tuned into resonance with the strong, 553.5 nm, 1S0→3P1 transition, while the other beam, of Rabi frequency Ω2, was tuned into resonance with the weak, 791.1 nm, 1S0→3P1 transition. The fluorescence spectrum of the strong transition was recorded for the case when Ω1≈35 MHz and Q2≈45 MHz and, it was found that the spectrum was three-peaked. Most interestingly, the measured linewidth (FWHM) for the central peak was 16 MHz, or 2 MHz less than the 18 MHz natural width of the strong transition even before the substantial instrumental broadening (≈8 MHz) of the peak was deconvolved.
The technique of optical pumping dips has been employed to generate subnatural structure in a 87Rb^{87}\mathrm{Rb}87Rb D1{D}_{1}D1​ line (natural width 5.6 MHz). Structure as narrow as 1.4 MHz was observed. These experiments represent the first observation of subnatural spectral structure generated without requiring atomic coherence. Additionally, line shapes observed in these studies may be analyzed to yield transition dipole moments without requiring internal standards or an absolute calibration of fluorescence collection efficiency in the experimental apparatus.
We demonstrate extremely narrow resonances for polarization rotation in an atomic vapor. The resonances are created using a strong control laser on the same transition, which polarizes the atoms due to optical pumping among the magnetic sublevels. As the power in the control laser is increased, successively higher-order nested polarization-rotation resonances are created, with progressively narrower linewidths. We study these resonances in the D-2 line of Rb in a room temperature vapor cell, and demonstrate a width of 0.14 G for the third-order rotation. The physical basis for the observed resonances is that optical pumping results in a simplified. AV-type level structure with differential dressing of the levels by the control laser, which is why the control power has to be sufficiently high for each resonance to appear. This explanation is borne out by a density-matrix analysis of the system. The dispersive lineshape and subnatural width of the resonance lends itself naturally to applications such as laser locking to atomic transitions and precision measurements. Copyright (c) EPLA, 2014