Coherence measurement of kicked Rydberg wave packets

T. C. Weinacht, Jaewook Ahn, P. H. Bucksbaum

Jochen Arlt, Carsten Weiss, R. Beigang

Joel M. Murray, S. N. Pisharody, Haidan Wen +1 more

A kick from a unipolar half-cycle pulse (HCP) can redistribute population and shift the relative phase between states in a radial Rydberg wave packet. We have measured the quantum coherence properties following the kick, and show that selected coherences can be destroyed by applying a HCP at specific times. Quantum mechanical simulations show that this is due to redistribution of the angular momentum in the presence of noise. These results have implications for the storage and retrieval of quantum information in the wave packet.

C. L. Stokely, F. B. Dunning, Carlos O Reinhold +1 more

We show that dynamics can, in general, be used to enhance the coherence of a Hamiltonian ensemble and we analyze the transient coherence using the coarse-grained entropy. We illustrate this concept using a Rydberg atom subject to an impulsive momentum transfer or ``kick.'' Classical simulations predict that the wave packet generated by the kick undergoes strong transient phase-space localization, which forms an excellent starting point for its further control and manipulation. Moreover, we show that such localized states can be ``trapped'' for extended periods using a train of subsequent kicks.

Mary R. Kutteruf

B. Wyker, F. B. Dunning, Carlos O Reinhold +2 more