Journal de physique
Doppler-free multi-photon excitation : light shift and saturation
G. Grynberg
Abstract
We describe the influence of the intensity variation of the light in a standing wave on the lineshape of a Doppler-free multi-photon transition. We show that as long as the light shifts and the saturation are small compared to the Doppler width, a motional narrowing effect occurs and the line remains Lorentzian, the centre being shifted by an amount equal to the mean value of the dynamic Stark effect. We consider also the case of transients. We show that at resonance, it is possible to observe different responses according to the light intensity. In particular, it is possible to observe Rabi oscillations only if the Rabi frequency is larger than the natural width and smaller than the Doppler width of the transition.