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Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology A Vacuum Surfaces and Films

Novel rubidium atomic beam with an alkali dispenser source

Timothy Roach, Dwayne Henclewood

Published Oct 20, 2004• 17 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We describe a novel atomic beam apparatus with a resistively heated alkali dispenser source and a cold-pumped intermediate chamber. Using laser fluorescence spectroscopy we have measured the atomic density to be 3×1011atoms∕m3 and the total flux to be 5×108atoms∕s in a 0.3cm diameter beam. We have also characterized the velocity distribution of the source based on the Doppler-shifted fluorescence spectrum. The compact geometry, flexibility, and simplicity of the beam may make it useful as an optical frequency reference or for experiments on atom-cooling.

DOI
10.1116/1.1806440

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Alkali metal dispensers have become an indispensable tool in the production of atomic vapors for magnetometry, alkali vapor cell clocks, and laser cooling experiments. A primary advantage of these dispensers is that they contain alkali metal in an inert form that can be exposed to air without hazard. However, their high temperature of operation (>600 °C) is undesirable for many applications, as it shifts the atomic speed distribution to higher values and presents a radiative heat source that can raise the temperature of its surroundings. For this reason, dispensers are typically not used in line-of-sight applications, such as atomic beam generation. In this work, we present an integrated rubidium dispenser collimating device with a thickness of only 2 mm that produces a beam of atoms traveling primarily in the forward direction. We find that the collimator plate serves to both shield the dispenser's radiation and moderate the velocity of the atomic beam so that the measured longitudinal speed distribution is comparable to that of an ordinary alkali oven at only a slightly elevated temperature of 200 °C. To confirm our theory, we also constructed another compact apparatus consisting of a dispenser and a silicon collimator and the measurements support our conclusion. Our integrated dispenser collimator will particularly be useful in integrated photonics and cavity QED on-chip, where a localized, directed source of Rb vapor in small quantities is needed.

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We have created an atomic beam source of lithium atoms for use in a cryogenic environment. \nThis beam source is expected to provide a \nflux of 10 to the 18 atoms/s. The main features of this source \nare a reservoir chamber of solid lithium heated with heater wire, creating a lithium gas that \ntravels down an ohmically heated tube and exits as an effusive beam. That beam is directed at \na cold supersonic jet of helium. As lithium atoms enter the helium gas they rapidly thermalize \nand become entrained. The design challenges faced included directing the heat load away from \nthe cold elements of the cryogenic chamber, obtaining the correct temperatures to provide the \ndesired \nflux, and measuring the beam as it exited the reservoir. Through the use of laser induced fluorescence, we believe we have observed capture of lithium by the helium jet. Such a beam source \ncan be used to form an intense cold atom source with the potential future application of serving \nas a pump source for an atom laser.

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Characterization of alkali metal dispensers and non-evaporable getter pumps in ultrahigh vacuum systems for cold atomic sensors

David R. Scherer, David B. Fenner, Joel M. Hensley

A glass ultrahigh vacuum chamber with rubidium alkali metal dispensers and nonevaporable getter pumps has been developed and used to create a cold atomic sample in a chamber that operates with only passive vacuum pumps. The ion-mass spectrum of evaporated gases from the alkali metal dispenser has been recorded as a function of dispenser current. The efficacy of the nonevaporable getter pumps in promoting and maintaining vacuum has been characterized by observation of the Rb vapor optical absorption on the D2 transition at 780 nm and vacuum chamber pressure rate of rise tests. The authors have demonstrated a sample of laser-cooled Rb atoms in this chamber when isolated and operating without active vacuum pumps.

arXiv:1203.1202•Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology A Vacuum Surfaces and Films•Oct 9, 2012•31 citations
We describe a novel atomic beam apparatus with a resistively heated alkali dispenser source and a cold-pumped intermediate chamber. Using laser fluorescence spectroscopy we have measured the atomic density to be 3×1011atoms∕m3 and the total flux to be 5×108atoms∕s in a 0.3cm diameter beam. We have also characterized the velocity distribution of the source based on the Doppler-shifted fluorescence spectrum. The compact geometry, flexibility, and simplicity of the beam may make it useful as an optical frequency reference or for experiments on atom-cooling.
Alkali metal dispensers have become an indispensable tool in the production of atomic vapors for magnetometry, alkali vapor cell clocks, and laser cooling experiments. A primary advantage of these dispensers is that they contain alkali metal in an inert form that can be exposed to air without hazard. However, their high temperature of operation (>600 °C) is undesirable for many applications, as it shifts the atomic speed distribution to higher values and presents a radiative heat source that can raise the temperature of its surroundings. For this reason, dispensers are typically not used in line-of-sight applications, such as atomic beam generation. In this work, we present an integrated rubidium dispenser collimating device with a thickness of only 2 mm that produces a beam of atoms traveling primarily in the forward direction. We find that the collimator plate serves to both shield the dispenser's radiation and moderate the velocity of the atomic beam so that the measured longitudinal speed distribution is comparable to that of an ordinary alkali oven at only a slightly elevated temperature of 200 °C. To confirm our theory, we also constructed another compact apparatus consisting of a dispenser and a silicon collimator and the measurements support our conclusion. Our integrated dispenser collimator will particularly be useful in integrated photonics and cavity QED on-chip, where a localized, directed source of Rb vapor in small quantities is needed.
We discuss the implementation and characterization of the source of a slow, intense, and collimated beam of rubidium atoms. The cold atomic beam is produced by two-dimensional magneto-optical trapping in directions transverse to the atomic beam axis and unbalanced Doppler cooling in the axial direction. The vacuum design allows use of relatively low laser power and a considerably simplified assembly. The atomic beam has a high flux of about $2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{10}\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{atoms}∕\mathrm{s}$ at a total cooling laser power of 55mW55\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{mW}55mW. It has a narrow longitudinal velocity distribution with mean velocity 15m∕s15\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{m}∕\mathrm{s}15m∕s with full width at half maximum 3.5m∕s3.5\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{m}∕\mathrm{s}3.5m∕s and has a low divergence of 26mrad26\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{mrad}26mrad. The high flux enables ultrafast loading of about 1010{10}^{10}1010 atoms into a three-dimensional (3D) magneto-optical trap within 500 ms. The variation of the atomic beam flux was studied as a function of the rubidium vapor pressure, cooling laser power, transverse cooling laser beam length, detuning of the cooling laser, and relative intensities of the cooling beams along the atomic beam axis. We also discuss a detailed comparison of our measurements of the cold atomic beam with a 3D numerical simulation.
We propose and demonstrate pump-probe spectroscopy of rubidium absorption that reveals the sub-Doppler hyperfine structure of the ${}^{5}{\mathrm{S}}_{1/2}\ensuremath{\leftrightarrow}{}^{5}{\mathrm{P}}_{3/2}$ (D2{\mathrm{D}}_{2}D2​) transitions. The counterpropagating pump and probe lasers are independently tunable in frequency, with the probe operating at the single-photon level. The two-dimensional spectrum measured as the laser frequencies are scanned shows fluorescence, Doppler-broadened absorption dips, and sub-Doppler features. The detuning between the pump and probe lasers allows compensation of the Doppler shift for all atomic velocities in the room-temperature vapor, meaning we observe sub-Doppler features for all atoms in the beam. We detail a theoretical model of the system that incorporates fluorescence, saturation effects, and optical pumping and compare this with the measured spectrum, finding a mean absolute percentage error of 3.11%. This high level of agreement allows us to extract the number density and temperature of the Rb\mathrm{Rb}Rb vapor from the two-dimensional spectrum. In the future this technique could be used as an atomic frequency standard for calibrating and characterising a single-photon or low-light-level source.
Abstract : An absorption spectrum of a rubidium alkali metal dispenser (AMD) cell was obtained in order to determine the system s suitability for use in a diode pumped alkali laser (DPAL) and use in high-temperature spectroscopic studies. The AMD produced a concentration of 3.65 0.16 1010 cm-3, which is in the ideal range for Beer s Law region absorption spectroscopy, but too low to make a high-power DPAL in a 10 cm cell with a poor Q resonator. Before AMDs can be used to determine pressure broadening and shifting coefficients, issues concerning contamination and producing rubidium vapor at pressure must be resolved. A separate portion of this study focused on a sealed rubidium Pyrex cell with neon buffer gas. A continuous wave titanium sapphire beam was focused into the cell with various lenses to maximize pump intensity through the cell. Images were taken of the side fluorescence of the cell to determine the bleached regions. The total horizontal propagation of the bleached region for each image was proportional to the pump laser power and the inverse of the rubidium vapor density. Disparity between the bleached volume estimated from the beam parameters and the theoretical bleached volume suggested the beam intensity had a strong radial dependence. When the pump wavelength was changed, visible side fluorescence occurred in regions where the laser intensity was at least 0.125 times the saturation intensity and therefore not in the regions where the decay was determined by Beer s Law.
We have created an atomic beam source of lithium atoms for use in a cryogenic environment. \nThis beam source is expected to provide a \nflux of 10 to the 18 atoms/s. The main features of this source \nare a reservoir chamber of solid lithium heated with heater wire, creating a lithium gas that \ntravels down an ohmically heated tube and exits as an effusive beam. That beam is directed at \na cold supersonic jet of helium. As lithium atoms enter the helium gas they rapidly thermalize \nand become entrained. The design challenges faced included directing the heat load away from \nthe cold elements of the cryogenic chamber, obtaining the correct temperatures to provide the \ndesired \nflux, and measuring the beam as it exited the reservoir. Through the use of laser induced fluorescence, we believe we have observed capture of lithium by the helium jet. Such a beam source \ncan be used to form an intense cold atom source with the potential future application of serving \nas a pump source for an atom laser.
A glass ultrahigh vacuum chamber with rubidium alkali metal dispensers and nonevaporable getter pumps has been developed and used to create a cold atomic sample in a chamber that operates with only passive vacuum pumps. The ion-mass spectrum of evaporated gases from the alkali metal dispenser has been recorded as a function of dispenser current. The efficacy of the nonevaporable getter pumps in promoting and maintaining vacuum has been characterized by observation of the Rb vapor optical absorption on the D2 transition at 780 nm and vacuum chamber pressure rate of rise tests. The authors have demonstrated a sample of laser-cooled Rb atoms in this chamber when isolated and operating without active vacuum pumps.