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Physical Review A

Pump-probe spectroscopy of cold 87Rb atoms in various polarization configurations

Ying-Cheng Chen, Yun-Wen Chen, Jung-Jung Su, Jeng-Yu Huang, Ite A. Yu

Published Mar 14, 2001• 29 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We investigate systematically pump-probe spectroscopy of cold ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms produced by a magneto-optical trap. The pump-probe spectra are measured without the presence of the trapping beams or any optical molasses. Various polarization configurations of the probe and pump fields result in very different spectra of probe absorption. The observed spectra exhibit a dispersive profile, a dispersionlike profile, a Lorentzian profile, or a dispersive profile plus a Lorentzian profile. The widths of all the spectral profiles are narrower than the natural linewidth of the excited state. Our work clarifies the mechanisms behind these different spectral profiles and provides essential information for the pump-probe spectroscopy of cold atoms.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.63.043808

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We report on cw measurements of probe beam absorption and four-wave-mixing spectra in a 85Rb^{85}\mathrm{Rb}85Rb magneto-optical trap taken while the trap is in operation. The trapping beams are used as pump light. We concentrate on the central feature of the spectra at small pump-probe detuning and attribute its narrow resonant structures to the superposition of Raman transitions between light-shifted sublevels of the ground atomic state and to atomic recoil processes. These two contributions have different dependencies on trap parameters and we show that the former is inhomogeneously broadened. The strong dependence of the spectra on the probe-beam polarization indicates the existence of large optical anisotropy of the cold-atom sample, which is attributed to the recoil effects. We point out that the recoil-induced resonances can be isolated from other contributions, making pump-probe spectroscopy a highly sensitive diagnostic tool for atoms in a working magneto-optical trap.
Absorption spectra of cold Cs atoms in a magneto-optical trap under the influence of a strong external pump laser field with arbitrary detuning and intensity have been systematically investigated. The spectra featured the Rabi sidebands of each transition, and their behavior was nicely fitted by the dressed-atom theory. A pronounced dispersion-type profile with sub-natural linewidth at the pump frequency may be attributable to the stimulated Raman process by sublevels that are lightshifted and optically pumped by the pump laser.
The influence of an ionizing laser on the pump-probe spectra of 87 Rb over the transition 5 2 S 1/2 , F = 2 → 5 2 P 3/2 , F' = 3 is experimentally studied in an operating magneto-optical trap. These spectral features, including gain peak, a dispersion-like structure and absorption peak, become weak as the intensity of the ionizing laser increases. Moreover, the profiles of the absorption peak and gain peak vary as the ionizing laser intensity changes. Such results indicate that there is more than one component in the two features and that each component has different dependences on the number of 87 Rb atoms.
Absorption spectra of cold rubidium atoms in an integrating sphere under the influence of a diffuse laser field have been systematically investigated. A pronounced dispersionlike structure centered at the light-shifted pump frequency is observed with a subnatural linewidth. In particular, two clearly resolved absorption resonances on the $5{S}_{1/2}(F=2)\ensuremath{\rightarrow}5{P}_{3/2}({F}^{\ensuremath{'}}=3)$ transitions occur with variable probe beam intensity, which is consistent with our proposed theoretical model. Based on the two absorption resonances,we measure the dependence of light shifts, from which we can directly extract the effective Rabi frequency in a diffuse laser field, on the probe laser intensity, pump laser intensity, and pump laser detuning. Our work helps to identify the physical mechanisms behind these spectral features and is beneficial for studying the corresponding effect in a cold sample.
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We report an experimental observation of doubly dressed states in 87Rb{}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}87Rb atoms cooled and confined in a magneto-optical trap. The doubly dressed states are produced by a strong-coupling laser and a moderate pump laser in a three-level atomic configuration. The absorption spectrum of a weak probe laser reveals a three-peaked spectral profile that can be interpreted by a dressed-state picture and agrees well with calculations based on the density-matrix equations.