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Physical Review Letters

Angular Dependence of the Dipole-Dipole Interaction in a Nearly One-Dimensional Sample of Rydberg Atoms

Thomas J. Carroll, Katharine Claringbould, Anne L. Goodsell, M. J. Lim, Michael W. Noel

Published Oct 4, 2004• 100 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Atoms in an ultracold highly excited sample are strongly coupled through the dipole-dipole interaction. In an effort to understand and manipulate the complicated interactions in this system we are investigating their dependence on the relative orientation of the dipoles. By focusing a 480 nm beam from a tunable dye laser into a magneto-optical trap, we produce a nearly one-dimensional sample of Rydberg atoms. The trap lies at the center of four conducting rods with which we can vary the magnitude and direction of the electric field at the trap, thus controlling the orientation of the dipoles with respect to the sample axis. We have measured the strength of the interaction for a variety of relative orientations.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.93.153001

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Atoms in an ultracold highly excited sample are strongly coupled through the dipole-dipole interaction. In an effort to understand and manipulate the complicated interactions in this system we are investigating their dependence on the relative orientation of the dipoles. By focusing a 480 nm beam from a tunable dye laser into a magneto-optical trap, we produce a nearly one-dimensional sample of Rydberg atoms. The trap lies at the center of four conducting rods with which we can vary the magnitude and direction of the electric field at the trap, thus controlling the orientation of the dipoles with respect to the sample axis. We have measured the strength of the interaction for a variety of relative orientations.
Ultracold Rydberg atoms in a static electric field can exchange energy via the dipole-dipole interaction. The Stark effect shifts the energy levels of the atoms which tunes the energy exchange into resonance at specific values of the electric field (F\"orster resonances). We excite rubidium atoms to Rydberg states by focusing either a 480 nm beam from a tunable dye laser or a pair of diode lasers into a magneto-optical trap. The trap lies at the center of a configuration of electrodes. We scan the electric field by controlling the voltage on the electrodes while measuring the fraction of atoms that interact. Dipole-dipole interaction spectra are presented for initially excited rubidium ndndnd states for n=31n=31n=31 to 46 and for four different pairs of initially excited rubidium nsnsns states. We also present the dipole-dipole interaction spectra for individual rubidium 32ddd (j,mj)(j,\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}{m}_{j})(j,mj​) fine structure levels that have been selectively excited. The data are compared to calculated spectra.
Ultracold highly excited atoms in a magneto-optical trap (MOT) are strongly coupled by the dipole-dipole interaction. We have investigated the importance of many-body effects by controlling the dimensionality and density of the excited sample. We excited three different cylindrical volumes of atoms in the MOT to Rydberg states. At small radius, where the sample is nearly one-dimensional, many-body interactions are suppressed. At larger radii, the sample becomes three-dimensional and many-body effects are apparent.
Rydberg atoms possess a strong atom-atom interaction, which limits its density in an atomic sample. Such effect is known as a Rydberg-atom blockade. Here, we present a way to control such effect by directly orienting the induced atomic dipole moment using a dc external electrical field. To demonstrate it, we excite the 50S1/250{S}_{1/2}50S1/2​ Rb atomic state in a quasiunidimensional sample held in a quasielectrostatic trap. A pure nSnSnS state holds only van der Waals interaction at long range, but in the presence of an external electric field the state mixing leads to strong dipole-dipole interactions. We have measured the Rydberg-atom population as a function of ground-state atoms density for several angles between the electric field and the main axis of the unidimensional sample. The results indicate that the limit on the final Rydberg density can be controlled by electric-field orientation. Besides, we have characterized the sample by using a single-atom ion imaging technique, demonstrating that it does behave as a unidimensional sample.
Rydberg atoms possess a strong atom-atom interaction, which limits its density in an atomic sample. Such effect is known as a Rydberg-atom blockade. Here, we present a way to control such effect by directly orienting the induced atomic dipole moment using a dc external electrical field. To demonstrate it, we excite the 50S1/250{S}_{1/2}50S1/2​ Rb atomic state in a quasiunidimensional sample held in a quasielectrostatic trap. A pure nSnSnS state holds only van der Waals interaction at long range, but in the presence of an external electric field the state mixing leads to strong dipole-dipole interactions. We have measured the Rydberg-atom population as a function of ground-state atoms density for several angles between the electric field and the main axis of the unidimensional sample. The results indicate that the limit on the final Rydberg density can be controlled by electric-field orientation. Besides, we have characterized the sample by using a single-atom ion imaging technique, demonstrating that it does behave as a unidimensional sample.
Circular Rydberg atoms (CRAs), i.e., Rydberg atoms with maximal orbital momentum, ideally combine long coherence times and strong interactions, a key property of quantum systems, in particular for the development of quantum technologies. However, the dipole-dipole interaction between CRAs has not been observed so far. We report the measurement and characterization of the resonant dipole-dipole interaction between two CRAs, individually trapped in optical tweezers, and find excellent agreement with theoretical predictions. We demonstrate a dynamic control over the strength of the interaction by tuning the orientation of an electric field. We use the interaction between the CRAs as a meter for the interatomic distance, and record the relative motion between two atoms in their traps. This motion, that we induce through the interaction between Rydberg levels with permanent electric dipoles, transiently populated during the preparation of the circular states, is a signature of spin-motion coupling.
Abstract We calculate pair potential curves for interacting Rydberg atoms in a constant electric field and use them to determine the effective C 3 dipole–dipole and C 6 van der Waals coefficients. We compare the C 3 and C 6 with experiments where the angle of a polarizing electric field is varied with respect to the axis of a quasi-1-dimensional trap at ultracold temperatures. The dipoles produced via polarization of the atoms have an angular dependent dipole–dipole interaction. We focus on the interaction potential of two rubidium Rydberg atoms in 50 S 1 / 2 states in the blockade regime. For internuclear distances close to the blockade radius, R bl ≈ 4–6 μ m, molecular calculations are in much better agreement with experimental results than those based on the properties of single atoms and independent calculations of C 3 and C 6 which were used to analyze the original experiment. We find that the calculated C 6 coefficient is within 8% of the experimental value while the C 3 coefficient is within 20% of the experimental value.