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Journal of the Optical Society of America B

Effect of transverse guiding on the velocity distribution of an atomic beam

Mara Goff Prentiss, A. Cable, N. P. Bigelow

Published Nov 1, 1989• 9 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We have observed that the transverse guiding that results when an intense light field with a Gaussian intensity distribution is superimposed upon an atomic beam can increase the total number of atoms in the beam and select atoms according to transverse velocity. This guiding preferentially retains atoms with small longitudinal velocities; consequently the expected value of the longitudinal velocity will decrease, even though no particular atom is slowed. The density of cold atoms in an atomic beam that has been slowed and cooled by a strong standing-wave field can be enhanced by such a process since the standing wave provides its own transverse guide.

DOI
10.1364/josab.6.002155

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We have observed that the transverse guiding that results when an intense light field with a Gaussian intensity distribution is superimposed upon an atomic beam can increase the total number of atoms in the beam and select atoms according to transverse velocity. This guiding preferentially retains atoms with small longitudinal velocities; consequently the expected value of the longitudinal velocity will decrease, even though no particular atom is slowed. The density of cold atoms in an atomic beam that has been slowed and cooled by a strong standing-wave field can be enhanced by such a process since the standing wave provides its own transverse guide.
Atoms moving in an intense, near resonant standing wave (SW) experience a force along the direction of the SW. This force has been investigated by observing its effect on the transverse velocities of atoms in a thermal beam. When the standing wave is tuned above resonance the atomic beam is collimated and has an increased intensity at the center of the beam. Below resonance, the SW anti-collimates the atomic beam, reducing the central intensity. These effects are due to the interaction between the induced atomic dipole and the inhomogeneous field of the SW. Further investigation shows structure in the transverse velocity distribution of the atomic beam. This structure is due to multiphoton (Doppleron) resonances in the force. Calculations reproduce the dipole force and multiphoton resonance effects and are in good agreement with the data.
The interaction of a beam of two level atoms with a standing wave laser field has been the subject of extensive investigation in recent times. A standing wave perpendicular to an atomic beam allows the manipulation of the transverse velocity distribution. The interaction of an atomic beam with a strong standing wave laser field has been systematically investigated by both theoretical simulation and experiment in this thesis. We have developed a numerical model based on a continued fraction solution for the light pressure forces to simulate the near perpendicular interaction of an atomic beam with a strong standing wave laser field. The reshaping of the transverse spatial profile of an atomic beam by a perpendicular, near resonant, standing wave laser field is investigated for red detunings using a longitudinal velocity selective detection system. The experimental dependence of the reshaped profile on the longitudinal and transverse atomic velocities agrees well with a continued fraction solution for the light force. In particular, a regime is found where channelling of the atoms near the antinodes of the standing wave produces a central peak in the spatial distribution of the atomic beam in the far field which have also been observed elsewhere.
The interaction of a beam of two level atoms with a standing wave laser light field has been the subject of extensive investigation in recent times. A standing wave perpendicular to an atomic beam enables the manipulation of the transverse velocity distribution. We have developed a numerical model using a continued fraction solution for the light pressure forces1 to simulate the interaction of an atomic beam with a strong laser field. Using this model, the behaviour of the atoms with small transverse velocity (kv1 « Γ) in a strong standing laser field has been systematically investigated.2
The transverse velocity distribution of a sodium atomic beam, laser cooled in one dimension, has been measured with sub-recoil resolution. A velocity-selective detection system was employed to separate the longitudinal and transverse velocity components to provide a direct measure of the transverse velocity distribution. The effects of varying the cooling laser intensity and detuning on the derived transverse temperature are presented, and show a remarkable insensitivity to the laser intensity. Atomic velocities within a factor of two of the recoil velocity are
We have demonstrated a new slowing and cooling technique which uses a standing-wave laser field collinear with a thermal Na atomic beam to produce a continuous supply of slow atoms, with most probable velocities ranging from -40 to + 80 m/sec. The velocity spread can be \ensuremath{\sim}10 m/sec (150 mK), the density >108{>10}^{8}>108, and the peak density in phase space \ensuremath{\sim}100 times that at the peak of the original Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution.
We have demonstrated the slowing of a beam of cold (180 K) metastable neon atoms in a diffuse reflecting cylindrical cavity with monochromatic light. Using a well-collimated atomic beam entering the cavity, it is shown that stimulated emission has a major effect on the transverse velocity distribution. A large saturation parameter sss results in a loss mechanism for the center line beam intensity. A Monte Carlo simulation shows that the light intensity should be evenly distributed with moderate saturation conditions, to optimize the slowing effect while minimizing the transverse diffusion.