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Physical Review Letters

Wave Packet Isotope Separation

Ilya Sh. Averbukh, Marc J. J. Vrakking, David M. Villeneuve, Albert Stolow

Published Oct 21, 1996• 130 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We introduce and demonstrate a general wave packet method for laser isotope separation. In this scheme, laser excited molecular (or atomic) wave packets of differing isotopes become spatially separated in the course of their long-time free evolution. In order to overcome the quantum spreading of wave packets, we make use of the phenomenon of revivals. We demonstrate experimentally, with mixed ${}^{79}$B${\mathrm{r}}_{2}$${\mathrm{/}}^{81}$B${\mathrm{r}}_{2}$ isotopes, that significant control over the isotope ratio can be achieved in a single shot.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.77.3518

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We introduce and demonstrate a general wave packet method for laser isotope separation. In this scheme, laser excited molecular (or atomic) wave packets of differing isotopes become spatially separated in the course of their long-time free evolution. In order to overcome the quantum spreading of wave packets, we make use of the phenomenon of revivals. We demonstrate experimentally, with mixed 79{}^{79}79B{\mathrm{r}}_{2}$${\mathrm{/}}^{81}Br2{\mathrm{r}}_{2}r2​ isotopes, that significant control over the isotope ratio can be achieved in a single shot.
Localized quantum wave packets can be produced in a variety of physical systems and are the subject of much current research in atomic, molecular, chemical, and condensed-matter physics. They are particularly well suited for studying the classical limit of a quantum-mechanical system. The motion of a localized quantum wave packet initially follows the corresponding classical motion. However, in most cases the quantum wave packet spreads and undergoes a series of collapses and revivals. We present a generic treatment of wave-packet evolution, and we provide conditions under which various types of revivals occur in ideal form. The discussion is at a level appropriate for an advanced undergraduate or first-year graduate course in quantum mechanics. Explicit examples of different types of revival structure are provided, and physical applications are discussed.
We propose a method of laser isotope separation based on the phenomenon of adiabatic inversion and illustrate the method in a multilevel system consisting of a single ground state and multiplet excited states. In this model, population may be transferred from the ground state to one of the excited manifolds with nearly 100% efficiency by using laser pulses, the envelope of which rises slowly and then decays rapidly on an internal time scale that can be precisely calculated. Adiabatic inversion in this model is strongly dependent on the laser frequency, thus permitting separation of isotopes by faking advantage of small shifts in molecular or atomic energy level spacings. The criterion that determines whether a laser pulse is adiabatic also depends strongly on the laser frequency and thereby enhances the separation. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the method with a solution of the time-dependent Schroedinger equation for a specific model of two isotopes.
We propose a general and scalable approach to isotope separation. The method is based on an irreversible change of the mass-to-magnetic moment ratio of a particular isotope in an atomic beam, followed by a magnetic multipole whose gradients deflect and guide the atoms. The underlying mechanism is a reduction of the entropy of the beam by the information of a single scattered photon for each atom that is separated. We numerically simulate isotope separation for a range of examples, which demonstrate this technique's general applicability to almost the entire periodic table. The practical importance of the proposed method is that large-scale isotope separation should be possible, using ordinary inexpensive magnets and the existing technologies of supersonic beams and lasers.
We introduce a general wave-packet isotope-separation scheme exploiting the optical Ramsey method. Optically excited molecular wave packets in different isotopes develop a well-defined phase difference after just a few vibrational periods. Phase-locked pairs of optical pulses are able to selectively pump one isotope back down to the ground state and enhance the excited-state population of the other isotope. The method is illustrated by simulating wave-packet isotope separation of a mixture of 79Br2,{}^{79}{\mathrm{Br}}_{2},79Br2​, 81Br2,{}^{81}{\mathrm{Br}}_{2},81Br2​, and 79Br81Br.{}^{79}{\mathrm{Br}}^{81}\mathrm{Br}.79Br81Br. We also exploit phase-locked pairs of optical pulses to reduce the time required for the spatial separation of wave packets.