The rate of photon absorption

Bridget Marx, J Simons, L. Allen

A rate is derived for n-photon absorption which includes all atomic and laser linewidths and experimentally check the laser linewidth dependence for two-photon absorption.

P. Carlos

Hao You, S. M. Hendrickson, J. D. Franson

We analyze the rate of two-photon absorption in tapered optical fibers with diameters less than the wavelength of the incident light. The rate of two-photon absorption is shown to be enhanced due to the small mode volume of the tapered fiber and the relatively large overlap of the evanescent field with an atomic vapor that surrounds the tapered region. The two-photon absorption rate is optimized as a function of the diameter of the tapered region.

Hao You, S. M. Hendrickson, J. D. Franson

We calculate the rate of two-photon absorption for frequency-entangled photons in a tapered optical fiber whose diameter is comparable to the wavelength of the light. The confinement of the electric field in the transverse direction increases the intensity associated with a single photon, while the two-photon absorption rate is further enhanced by the fact that the sum of the frequencies of the two photons is on resonance with the upper atomic state, even though each photon has a relatively broad linewidth. As a result, the photons are effectively confined in all three dimensions and the two-photon absorption rate for frequency-entangled photons in a tapered fiber was found to be comparable to that for unentangled photons in a microcavity with a small mode volume.

Stephen V. Kershaw