Physical Review Letters

Quantum wave function simulation of the resonance fluorescence spectrum from one-dimensional optical molasses

P. Marte, Ralph Dum, Richard Taïeb, Paul D. Lett, P. Zoller

Published Aug 30, 1993• 72 citations

Abstract

Using recently developed quantum wave function techniques, we have performed a simulation of $^{85}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms in a one-dimensional optical molasses, formed from counterpropagating laser beams with orthogonal linear polarizations. Both internal and external degrees of freedom are treated quantum mechanically in one dimension and the spectrum of resonance fluorescence is calculated and compared to recent experiments. Excellent agreement is obtained for the spectrum and additional insight is gained into the experimental evidence for quantized motion in the optical potentials.

DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.71.1335

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Physical Review Letters

Quantum wave function simulation of the resonance fluorescence spectrum from one-dimensional optical molasses

P. Marte, Ralph Dum, Richard Taïeb, Paul D. Lett, P. Zoller

Published Aug 30, 1993• 72 citations

Publisher

Abstract

Using recently developed quantum wave function techniques, we have performed a simulation of

^{85}\mathrm{Rb}

atoms in a one-dimensional optical molasses, formed from counterpropagating laser beams with orthogonal linear polarizations. Both internal and external degrees of freedom are treated quantum mechanically in one dimension and the spectrum of resonance fluorescence is calculated and compared to recent experiments. Excellent agreement is obtained for the spectrum and additional insight is gained into the experimental evidence for quantized motion in the optical potentials.

DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.71.1335

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P. Marte, Ralph Dum, Richard Taïeb +1 more

Bulletin of the American Physical SocietyMay 1, 19930 citations

Using recently developed quantum wave function techniques, we have performed a simulation of

^{85}\mathrm{Rb}

{\mathit{J}}_{\mathit{g}}

=1/2\ensuremath{\rightarrow}

{\mathit{J}}_{\mathit{e}}

=3/2 atomic transition in a laser configuration with two counterpropagating waves with orthogonal polarizations. We have solved the corresponding quantum master equation and calculated the relevant autocorrelation function of the atomic dipole using (i) a direct numerical solution of the master equation, (ii) a wave-function simulation of the master equation and correlation function employing periodic time-dependent Bloch wave functions, and (iii) a semiclassical bipotential calculation for the spectrum including a simple quantum correction.

We study theoretically the spectrum of resonance fluorescence and laser-cooling dynamics corresponding to quantized atomic motion in one-dimensional optical molasses. We consider an atom with a

{\mathit{J}}_{\mathit{g}}

=1\ensuremath{\rightarrow}

{\mathit{J}}_{\mathit{e}}

=2 transition interacting with two counterpropagating laser beams. The laser light is assumed to be linearly polarized with an angle \ensuremath{\theta} between the polarization vectors. We discuss the spectrum of resonance fluorescence, the spectroscopy of band structure in the optical potentials, and the population of the vibrational quantum levels as a function of the angle between the polarization vectors.