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Journal of Physics B Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics

Observation of Rydberg transitions induced by optical core dressing

N. J. van Druten, Harm Geert Muller

Published Jan 14, 1996• 14 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We study experimentally the behaviour of magnesium Rydberg series converging to the and ion states, coupled by a strong ( ) light field that is resonant with the transition between the ion states ( nm). This strong-field version of isolated-core excitation leads to modifications in the photoionization spectrum of the bound Rydberg series and to transitions between bound Rydberg states when the Rabi frequency associated with the core transition becomes larger than the Rydberg spacing.

DOI
10.1088/0953-4075/29/1/007

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Rydberg transitions induced by optical core dressing

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We study experimentally the behaviour of magnesium Rydberg series converging to the and ion states, coupled by a strong ( ) light field that is resonant with the transition between the ion states ( nm). This strong-field version of isolated-core excitation leads to modifications in the photoionization spectrum of the bound Rydberg series and to transitions between bound Rydberg states when the Rabi frequency associated with the core transition becomes larger than the Rydberg spacing.
We study theoretically the behavior of two atomic Rydberg series, coupled by a light field that strongly drives the optical transition between the core states to which these series converge. It is shown that this strong-field version of isolated-core excitation leads to a strong modification of the photoionization spectrum and to transitions between adjacent Rydberg states when the Rabi frequency associated with the core transition becomes larger than the Rydberg spacing. The intensities and pulse durations (\ensuremath{\approx} 2 GW/cm2 and 1 ps, respectively, for $n\ensuremath{\approx}20$ Rydberg states) needed for the observation of these effects are within reach of present-day lasers.
Laser-induced autoionization, a form of forced autoionization, is discussed. Highly excited atomic Rydberg states generally have a small cross section for photoionization due to their small overlap with the nucleus. The cross section for photoionization can be strongly enhanced if the Rydberg series is perturbed by an atomic state with a relatively large cross section for photoionization. The photoionization dynamics of such a perturbed Rydberg system shows strong similarities to that of an autoionizing Rydberg series. For intense laser pulses, which strongly couple the perturber to the continuum, the photoionization rate is limited by the coupling between the Rydberg states and the perturber or, in other words, the autoionization rate. The model describing this ionization dynamics is applied to the barium 6snd(1,3{(}^{1,3}(1,3D2{\mathit{D}}_{2}D2​) state which is perturbed by the 5d7d(1{(}^{1}(1D2{\mathit{D}}_{2}D2​) state. The calculations show good agreement with experimental results of photoionization of barium Rydberg states with subpicosecond laser pulses of light of 620 nm in wavelength.
Scalable local control over gate operations is an outstanding challenge in the field of quantum computing and programmable quantum simulation with Rydberg-atom arrays.One approach is to use a global field to excite atoms to the Rydberg state and tune individual atoms in and out of resonance via local light shifts.In this work, we point out that photon-scattering errors from light shifts can be significantly reduced if the light shift is applied to the Rydberg state instead of the ground state, which can be realized in Rydberg states of alkaline-earth atoms using optical transitions in the ion core.As a proof of concept, we experimentally demonstrate global control of Rydberg excitations in an Yb optical-tweezer array via light shifts induced by a laser tuned near the Yb + 6s → 6p 1/2 transition.We also perform detailed spectroscopy of the induced light shift and scattering rates of the 6sns 3 S 1 Rydberg states and reveal the existence of satellite lines where losses from autoionization are strongly suppressed.This work can be readily extended to implement local gate operations in Rydberg-atom arrays.
The coupling of an isolated quantum state to a continuum is typically associated with decoherence and decreased lifetime. For coupling rates larger than the bandwidth of the associated continuum, decoherence can be mitigated, and new stable eigenstates emerge. Here, we laser-couple diatomic molecules of highly excited Rydberg atoms, so-called Rydberg macrodimers, to a continuum of free motional states. Enabled by their small vibrational eigenfrequencies, we achieve the regime of strong continuum couplings and observe the appearance of new resonances. We explain the observed spectroscopic features as molecular states emerging in the presence of the light field using a Fano model. For atoms arranged on a lattice, we predict the strong continuum coupling to even stabilize triatomic molecules and find the first signatures of these by observing three-atom loss correlations using quantum gas microscopy. Our results present a mechanism to control decoherence and bind polyatomic molecules using strong light-matter interactions. Published by the American Physical Society 2024
When optical frequency fields are used to couple a ground state to a Rydberg state, the resonant dipole coupling is to a low angular momentum state. Higher angular momentum states are typically thought not to play a role in the excitation. The extremely large dipole matrix elements coupling Rydberg states of the same nnn but differing lll, however, allow optical fields of modest strengths to produce Rabi frequencies larger than optical frequencies. We demonstrate that these optical fields can therefore readily excite the higher angular momentum states, and we examine the consequences of this coupling.
We develop a theory describing laser excitation of a Rydberg series by an intense laser field. Our theory is based on the fact that the radiative coupling is restricted to a region around the atomic nucleus (the reaction zone) which is small in comparison with the extent of the excited Rydberg states. The physical processes inside the reaction zone are characterized by a few parameters which are slowly varying functions of energy across the Rydberg threshold. This finite range of the radiative coupling allows us to apply methods from quantum-defect theory and to treat the laser interaction with the Rydberg series and the adjoining electron continuum as a whole. Within this approach we derive analytical expressions for transition probabilities as a function of time in either a dressed-state representation which is appropriate as long as only a few Rydberg states are excited or a multiple-scattering expansion which is particularly suited for a description of the excitation process close to threshold. The physical picture emerging in this limit is one of a radial electronic wave packet which is generated within the reaction zone and moves in the Coulomb potential of the ionic core. Every time it returns to the inner turning point of its orbit, i.e., to the reaction zone, it is either deexcited back to the initial atomic state or is scattered by the ionic core.