Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference

Lifetime measurements of the 7d levels of atomic francium

R. Fliller, Cyril Langlois, Luis A. Orozco, Gene D. Sprouse

Published May 12, 2000• 1 citation

Abstract

Summary form only given. Atomic lifetime measurements are important probes of atomic structure because they depend on the initial and final state wave functions and the interaction that connects them. The study of francium, the heaviest alkali, has two advantages over other heavy elements. It has a simple atomic structure to calculate accurately, and it is possible to trap it with the well developed techniques of laser trapping and cooling despite the fact that its longest-lived isotope has a half-life of 20 minutes. Francium has the potential to increase our understanding of relativistic atoms while at the same time providing a good candidate for tests of the fundamental symmetries of parity and time in a calculable atomic system.

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Spectroscopy of francium

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Quantum Electronics and Laser Science Conference

Lifetime measurements of the 7d levels of atomic francium

R. Fliller, Cyril Langlois, Luis A. Orozco, Gene D. Sprouse

Published May 12, 2000• 1 citation

OpenAlex

Abstract

Related papers

Spectroscopy of francium

J. E. Simsarian, Joshua M. Grossman, Luis A. Orozco +3 more

Francium is the least studied of the alkali atoms because it has no stable isotopes. We have performed precision spectroscopy on cold Fr atoms in a magneto optical trap. We have determined the location of the first two excited states of the S series by two-photon spectroscopy. We have measured the lifetimes of the 7p levels with a precision better than 0.5%. Our measurements test the many-body perturbation theory ab initio calculations of the dipole matrix element to very high accuracy in this relativistic alkali.Francium is the least studied of the alkali atoms because it has no stable isotopes. We have performed precision spectroscopy on cold Fr atoms in a magneto optical trap. We have determined the location of the first two excited states of the S series by two-photon spectroscopy. We have measured the lifetimes of the 7p levels with a precision better than 0.5%. Our measurements test the many-body perturbation theory ab initio calculations of the dipole matrix element to very high accuracy in this relativistic alkali.

AIP conference proceedingsJan 1, 19991 citation

Lifetime measurements of the 7D levels of atomic francium

Joshua M. Grossman, R. Fliller, Luis A. Orozco +2 more

We present lifetime measurements of the ${7D}_{3/2}$ and ${7D}_{5/2}$ levels of Fr. We use a time-correlated single-photon counting technique on a sample of ${}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}$ atoms confined and cooled in a magneto-optical trap. The upper state of the ${7P}_{3/2}$ trapping transition serves as the resonant intermediate level for two-photon excitation of the $7D$ states. A probe laser provides the second step of the excitation, and we detect the decay of the atomic fluorescence. Our measurements help extend the knowledge of this class of atomic wave functions in which correlation effects are very significant. We measure lifetimes of $73.6\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.3 \mathrm{ns}$ and $67.7\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2.9 \mathrm{ns}$ for the ${7D}_{3/2}$ and ${7D}_{5/2}$ levels, respectively.We present lifetime measurements of the ${7D}_{3/2}$ and ${7D}_{5/2}$ levels of Fr. We use a time-correlated single-photon counting technique on a sample of ${}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}$ atoms confined and cooled in a magneto-optical trap. The upper state of the ${7P}_{3/2}$ trapping transition serves as the resonant intermediate level for two-photon excitation of the $7D$ states. A probe laser provides the second step of the excitation, and we detect the decay of the atomic fluorescence. Our measurements help extend the knowledge of this class of atomic wave functions in which correlation effects are very significant. We measure lifetimes of $73.6\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.3 \mathrm{ns}$ and $67.7\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2.9 \mathrm{ns}$ for the ${7D}_{3/2}$ and ${7D}_{5/2}$ levels, respectively.

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Measurement of the 7p2P3/2 Level Lifetime in Atomic Francium

W. Z. Zhao, J. E. Simsarian, Luis A. Orozco +2 more

We present the first measurement of an atomic radiative lifetime in Fr. We use a time-correlated single photon counting technique with a cold sample of ${}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}$ atoms in a magneto-optic trap. The results are a precision experimental test of the atomic many-body perturbation theory applied to the heaviest alkali. The lifetime for the $7p{}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ level of $21.02(16)$ ns gives a value for the reduced transition matrix element between the levels $7s{}^{2}{S}_{1/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}7p{}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ of $5.898(22){a}_{\ensuremath{\infty}}$ atomic units.We present the first measurement of an atomic radiative lifetime in Fr. We use a time-correlated single photon counting technique with a cold sample of ${}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}$ atoms in a magneto-optic trap. The results are a precision experimental test of the atomic many-body perturbation theory applied to the heaviest alkali. The lifetime for the $7p{}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ level of $21.02(16)$ ns gives a value for the reduced transition matrix element between the levels $7s{}^{2}{S}_{1/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}7p{}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ of $5.898(22){a}_{\ensuremath{\infty}}$ atomic units.

Physical Review LettersJun 2, 199732 citations

Laser trapping of radioactive 210 francium

J. E. Simsarian, Archisman Ghosh, G. Gwinner +3 more

Quantum Electronics and Laser Science ConferenceJun 7, 19960 citations

Lifetime measurements of the 7p levels of atomic francium

J. E. Simsarian, Luis A. Orozco, Gene D. Sprouse +1 more

We present lifetime measurements of the ${7p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ and ${7p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}$ levels of Fr. We use a time-correlated single-photon counting technique on a cold sample of ${}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}$ atoms in a magneto-optic trap. We excite the atoms with the trapping and repumping beams of the magneto-optic trap and detect the decay of the atomic fluorescence. The results are a precision experimental test of the atomic many-body perturbation theory applied to the heaviest alkali metal. The lifetime results are 21.02(11) ns and 29.45(11) ns for the ${7p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ and ${7p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}$ levels, respectively. This gives a line strength ratio ${\mathcal{S}}_{1/2}$ / ${\mathcal{S}}_{3/2}$ of 0.526(3) for these levels in Fr. To study sources of systematic errors we measure the lifetimes of ${5p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ and ${5p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}$ in stable ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ and obtain 26.20(9) ns and 27.64(4) ns, respectively.We present lifetime measurements of the ${7p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ and ${7p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}$ levels of Fr. We use a time-correlated single-photon counting technique on a cold sample of ${}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}$ atoms in a magneto-optic trap. We excite the atoms with the trapping and repumping beams of the magneto-optic trap and detect the decay of the atomic fluorescence. The results are a precision experimental test of the atomic many-body perturbation theory applied to the heaviest alkali metal. The lifetime results are 21.02(11) ns and 29.45(11) ns for the ${7p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ and ${7p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}$ levels, respectively. This gives a line strength ratio ${\mathcal{S}}_{1/2}$/${\mathcal{S}}_{3/2}$ of 0.526(3) for these levels in Fr. To study sources of systematic errors we measure the lifetimes of ${5p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ and ${5p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}$ in stable ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ and obtain 26.20(9) ns and 27.64(4) ns, respectively.

Physical Review AApr 1, 199895 citations

Performance of francium ion sources

Sergey Nikitich Atutov, R. Calabrese, L. Corradi +10 more

A cold cloud of rare atoms is desirable in several fields. High-resolution spectroscopy of poorly-known atomic levels and tests of the Standard Model in atomic systems are examples of studies pursued in laboratories around the world [1]. Francium is particularly suitable because it is the heaviest alkali metal and it has several isotopes with relatively long lifetimes. Also, one expects enhanced parity-violating effects and reduced theoretical uncertainties from isotope comparisons. By accumulating atoms in a trap, one partially compensates for their scarcity. Our group and the one at SUNY Stony Brook, who pioneered the field [2], are focusing on the isotopes with mass numbers in the range 208–211. A production target, a beam transport line and a magneto-optical trap (MOT) are operating at INFN’s National Laboratories in Legnaro. An overview of our work is given in Refs. [3, 4]. Here we summarize the performance of the Fr sources.A cold cloud of rare atoms is desirable in several fields. High-resolution spectroscopy of poorly-known atomic levels and tests of the Standard Model in atomic systems are examples of studies pursued in laboratories around the world [1]. Francium is particularly suitable because it is the heaviest alkali metal and it has several isotopes with relatively long lifetimes. Also, one expects enhanced parity-violating effects and reduced theoretical uncertainties from isotope comparisons. By accumulating atoms in a trap, one partially compensates for their scarcity. Our group and the one at SUNY Stony Brook, who pioneered the field [2], are focusing on the isotopes with mass numbers in the range 208–211. A production target, a beam transport line and a magneto-optical trap (MOT) are operating at INFN’s National Laboratories in Legnaro. An overview of our work is given in Refs. [3, 4]. Here we summarize the performance of the Fr sources.

Jan 1, 20060 citations

We present lifetime measurements of the

{7D}_{3/2}

and

{7D}_{5/2}

levels of Fr. We use a time-correlated single-photon counting technique on a sample of

{}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}

atoms confined and cooled in a magneto-optical trap. The upper state of the

{7P}_{3/2}

trapping transition serves as the resonant intermediate level for two-photon excitation of the

7D

states. A probe laser provides the second step of the excitation, and we detect the decay of the atomic fluorescence. Our measurements help extend the knowledge of this class of atomic wave functions in which correlation effects are very significant. We measure lifetimes of $73.6\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.3 \mathrm{ns}$ and $67.7\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2.9 \mathrm{ns}$ for the

{7D}_{3/2}

and

{7D}_{5/2}

levels, respectively.

We present the first measurement of an atomic radiative lifetime in Fr. We use a time-correlated single photon counting technique with a cold sample of

{}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}

atoms in a magneto-optic trap. The results are a precision experimental test of the atomic many-body perturbation theory applied to the heaviest alkali. The lifetime for the

7p{}^{2}{P}_{3/2}

level of

21.02(16)

ns gives a value for the reduced transition matrix element between the levels $7s{}^{2}{S}_{1/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}7p{}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ of $5.898(22){a}_{\ensuremath{\infty}}$ atomic units.

We present lifetime measurements of the

{7p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}

and

{7p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}

levels of Fr. We use a time-correlated single-photon counting technique on a cold sample of

{}^{210}\mathrm{Fr}

atoms in a magneto-optic trap. We excite the atoms with the trapping and repumping beams of the magneto-optic trap and detect the decay of the atomic fluorescence. The results are a precision experimental test of the atomic many-body perturbation theory applied to the heaviest alkali metal. The lifetime results are 21.02(11) ns and 29.45(11) ns for the

{7p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}

and

{7p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}

levels, respectively. This gives a line strength ratio

{\mathcal{S}}_{1/2}

{\mathcal{S}}_{3/2}

of 0.526(3) for these levels in Fr. To study sources of systematic errors we measure the lifetimes of

{5p}^{2}{P}_{3/2}

and

{5p}^{2}{P}_{1/2}

in stable

{}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}

and obtain 26.20(9) ns and 27.64(4) ns, respectively.