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Quantum Electronics

Measurement of the lifetime of rubidium atoms in a dark magneto-optical trap

O. I. Permyakova, A. V. Yakovlev, P. L. Chapovsky

Published Sep 30, 2008• 5 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The lifetimes of rubidium atoms in a dark magneto-optical trap are measured at different populations of the 'bright' and 'dark' hyperfine states of captured atoms. It is found that the lifetime of atoms in the trap decreases if they spend more time in the bright state. A simple explanation of this effect is proposed which is based on the increase in the transport cross section for collisions of thermal rubidium atoms surrounding the trap with cold rubidium atoms upon their electronic excitation.

DOI
10.1070/qe2008v038n09abeh013687

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European Quantum Electronics Conference (EQEC)•Jan 18, 2006•0 citations
The lifetimes of rubidium atoms in a dark magneto-optical trap are measured at different populations of the 'bright' and 'dark' hyperfine states of captured atoms. It is found that the lifetime of atoms in the trap decreases if they spend more time in the bright state. A simple explanation of this effect is proposed which is based on the increase in the transport cross section for collisions of thermal rubidium atoms surrounding the trap with cold rubidium atoms upon their electronic excitation.
The parameters of a dark magnetooptical trap for rubidium atoms are measured. The rubidium atoms captured and cooled in the trap occupy a hyperfine level of the ground electronic state, which does not interact with cooling laser radiation. The pulsed filling of the trap is produced due to desorption of rubidium caused by irradiation by a short (1 ms) light pulse. The trap captures and cools 2.5 × 10 8 rubidium atoms approximately for 0.2 s. The absorption spectra of a weak probe field by cold atoms are obtained, which demonstrate a good spectral resolution of the hyperfine structure in the excited state. This structure is completely hidden by the Doppler broadening in rubidium vapours at room temperature.
Spectral characteristics of rubidium atoms confined in a dark magneto-optical trap (DMOT) are measured, including probe absorption spectra and atom density as a function of the cooling and repumping laser frequencies. The trap can capture and cool more than 2.5 × 10 8 rubidium atoms, confining them in a hyperfine state weakly perturbed by the laser beams used to form the trap. The optical density of the trapped atomic cloud approaches 9. A qualitative model of the DMOT operation is presented, based on the experimental results obtained.
We measure the collision-rate coefficient between laser-cooled rubidium (Rb) atoms in a magneto-optical trap (MOT) and optically dark Rb+{}^{+}+ ions in an overlapping Paul trap. In such a mixture, the ions are created from the MOT atoms and allowed to accumulate in the ion trap, which results in a significant reduction in the number of steady-state MOT atoms. A theoretical rate-equation model is developed to describe the evolution of the MOT atom number due to ionization and ion-atom collisions, and we derive an expression for the ion-atom collision-rate coefficient. The loss of MOT atoms is studied systematically by sequentially switching on the various mechanisms in the experiment. Combining the measurements with the model allows the direct determination of the ion-atom collision-rate coefficient. Finally, the scope of the experimental technique developed here is discussed.