This paper investigates the performance optimization of optically pumped magnetometers under zero-field parametric modulation. Based on the analytical solutions of the Bloch equation, both longitudinal and transverse modulations are studied experimentally. To estimate the nonuniform polarization distribution of alkali-metal atoms in the vapor cell, an average pumping rate model is proposed. Furthermore, the accuracy of this model and the measurement of the transverse relaxation rate are verified via the agreement between experimental and theoretical values. The results indicate that optimal performance can be achieved by employing a suitable modulation field, the selection of which is related to the modulation index
u in the Bessel series and the pump-light intensity. Although both operating modes show similar responses to weak magnetic fields, their effects on pump-light intensity are different due to the means of detecting atomic polarization. An optimal value of the pump-light intensity on the response strength exists in longitudinal modulation. However, with regard to transverse modulation, the sensitivity under weak pump-light intensity is better. This research has far-reaching significance for cases when the parametric modulation is manipulated.
Optical pumping experiments have been performed on helium 4 atoms in the metastable level 2 3 S 1 with the object of studying the modulation of light in absorption in the longitudinal and transverse beams. Magnetic resonance curves were obtained similar to those found in emission in double-resonance experiments. With a particular geometrical arrangement employing circular polarizers, the Bloch magnetic resonance curves were obtained. Modulation at four times the applied frequency was obtained with a linear polarizer in the pumping beam. This modulation is ascribed to the circulation of coherence in the optical pumping cycle. From the behaviour of the resonance signals as a function of the frequency and amplitude of the stimulating field, it is inferred that a substantial part of the signal arises from coherence which has survived two complete cycles. The observations are satisfactorily explained by the theory developed in the previous paper.
Abstract Optical pumping is an efficient method for initializing and maintaining atomic spin ensembles in a well-defined quantum spin state. Standard optical pumping methods orient the spins by transferring photonic angular momentum to spin polarization. Generally the spins are oriented along the propagation direction of the light due to selection rules of the dipole interaction. Here we present and experimentally demonstrate that by modulating the light polarization, angular momentum perpendicular to the optical axis can be transferred efficiently to cesium vapor. The transverse pumping scheme employs transversely oriented dark states, allowing for control of the trajectory of the spins on the Bloch sphere. This new mechanism is suitable and potentially beneficial for diverse applications, particularly in quantum metrology.