This thesis presents developmental work on the existing magneto-optical trap (MOT) system and novel studies of coherence effects. The developmental work was carried out on the experimental apparatus used previously in this laboratory in order to perform experiments to study coherence effects in three- and four-level rubidium systems in the MOT. This developmental work includes the upgrading and installation of new laser systems, the improvement of the MOT, the installation of data acquisition hardware and software, and the commissioning of a new “second generation” MOT. As part of our studies of coherence effects, we present a wide-ranging theoretical and experimental study of non-adiabatic transient phenomena in a A system which exhibits electromagnetically induced transparency when a strong coupling field is rapidly switched on or off using a Pockels cell. The theoretical treatment uses a Laplace transform approach as well as standard numerical methods to solve the time-dependent density matrix equation. The results show clear Rabi oscillations and transient gain without population inversion of a weak probe in parameter regions not previously studied, and provide insight into the transition dynamics between bare states and dressed states. Experimental studies of a doubly driven V system are also reported, together with a theoretical dressed-state analysis of such systems. The expected three-peak spectrum is explored for various coupling field strengths and detunings. In all this work we have found good agreement between the theory and the experimental spectra once light shifts and uncoupled absorption in the rubidium system are taken into account.
This thesis presents developmental work on the existing magneto-optical trap (MOT) system and novel studies of coherence effects. The developmental work was carried out on the experimental apparatus used previously in this laboratory in order to perform experiments to study coherence effects in three- and four-level rubidium systems in the MOT. This developmental work includes the upgrading and installation of new laser systems, the improvement of the MOT, the installation of data acquisition hardware and software, and the commissioning of a new “second generation” MOT. As part of our studies of coherence effects, we present a wide-ranging theoretical and experimental study of non-adiabatic transient phenomena in a A system which exhibits electromagnetically induced transparency when a strong coupling field is rapidly switched on or off using a Pockels cell. The theoretical treatment uses a Laplace transform approach as well as standard numerical methods to solve the time-dependent density matrix equation. The results show clear Rabi oscillations and transient gain without population inversion of a weak probe in parameter regions not previously studied, and provide insight into the transition dynamics between bare states and dressed states. Experimental studies of a doubly driven V system are also reported, together with a theoretical dressed-state analysis of such systems. The expected three-peak spectrum is explored for various coupling field strengths and detunings. In all this work we have found good agreement between the theory and the experimental spectra once light shifts and uncoupled absorption in the rubidium system are taken into account.
Summary form only given. Many studies have been made of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) and probe gain under steady-state conditions. We have carried out experimental studies of transient effects in rubidium lambda systems in the non-adiabatic regime where the coupling field is rapidly switched on using a Pockels cell in a time that is short compared with transient time scales. Our preliminary work has confirmed predictions that the steady-state EIT is approached through damped oscillations characterised by the coupling field Rabi frequency /spl Omega//sub c/ and the spontaneous decay rate /spl Gamma/. We report results of our recent investigations into the effects of strong coupling fields conducted in several different lambda schemes in the rubidium 5S/sub 1/2/-5P/sub 3/2/ hyperfine levels in a magnetooptical trap. We also studied the effects of the initial conditions of population and optical coherence, probe absorption on uncoupled Zeeman transitions, and incoherent pumping.
This dissertation reports experimental studies of nonlinear optical effects manifested by electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) in cold Rb atoms. The cold Rb atoms are confined in a magneto-optic trap (MOT) obtained with the standard laser cooling and trapping technique. Because of the near zero Doppler shift and a high phase density, the cold Rb sample is well suited for studies of atomic coherence and interference and related applications, and the experiments can be compared quantitatively with theoretical calculations. It is shown that with EIT induced in the multi-level Rb system by laser fields, the linear absorption is suppressed and the nonlinear susceptibility is enhanced, which enables studies of nonlinear optics in the cold atoms with slow photons and at low light intensities. Three independent experiments are described and the experimental results are presented. First, an experimental method that can produce simultaneously co-propagating slow and fast light pulses is discussed and the experimental demonstration is reported. Second, it is shown that in a three-level Rb system coupled by multi-color laser fields, the multi-channel two-photon Raman transitions can be manipulated by the relative phase and frequency of a control laser field. Third, a scheme for all-optical switching near single photon levels is developed. The scheme is based on the phase-dependent multi-photon interference in a coherently coupled four-level system. The phase dependent multi-photon interference is observed and switching of a single light pulse by a control pulse containing ∼20 photons is demonstrated. These experimental studies reveal new phenomena manifested by quantum coherence and interference in cold atoms, contribute to the advancement of fundamental quantum optics and nonlinear optics at ultra-low light intensities, and may lead to the development of new techniques to control quantum states of atoms and photons, which will be useful for applications in quantum measurements and quantum photonic devices.
This thesis describes theoretical and experimental work concerning radiation forces on atoms, with particular reference to rubidium atoms confined in a magneto-optical trap. After a short history of the field of laser cooling, a review of the semiclassical theory of mechanical interactions between two-level atoms and electromagnetic radiation is given. Different formulations of the semiclassical theory are discussed, including a new formulation in terms of momentum transfer amongst the plane wave modes of the electromagnetic field. Two important applications of light forces on atoms, namely 'optical molasses' and the 'magneto-optical trap', are then described with emphasis on experimental parameters. Three sub-Doppler cooling mechanisms, 'sisyphus cooling', 'motion-induced orientation cooling' and the 'magnetically-assisted sisyphus effect', are described and their role in optical molasses and the magneto-optical trap is discussed. A new study of the polarisation gradients which occur in 3-D monochromatic light fields is presented and quantifies their relative presence in different light field configurations. Polarisation gradient parameters are developed and shown to be directly related to the relativistic spin tensor of the light field. Implications of this polarisation gradient study for laser cooling work are discussed. The design, construction from scratch, operation and testing of a magneto-optical trap for rubidium are described, including novel designs for two vacuum cells. Preliminary experiments to characterise the trap are described and results are presented; they primarily concern the number and distribution of atoms in the trap. Finally. the theory of time domain spectroscopy is reviewed. The construction and testing of a pulsed dye laser for study of coherent transients in samples of laser-cooled atoms and a proposed experiment to measure the temperature of cold atoms using coherent transients are described. Factors expected to influence the shape of coherent transients in cold atoms are discussed.
Observation of transient effects in electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) is reported in Rb85 cooled in a magneto-optical trap. The transmission of a weak probe beam in resonance with the 5S1/2(F=3) to 5P3/2(F=3) hyperfine transition increased transiently when a relatively strong coupling field in resonance with the 5S1/2(F=2) to 5P3/2(F=3) hyperfine transition was switched on rapidly using a Pockels cell. The probe transient showed an initial Rabi half-cycle overshoot before settling down to steady-state EIT. The results agreed well with computations using a three-state model of the \ensuremath{\Lambda} system. The computations also suggest that transient gain should be observed with coupling field power only four times larger than that presently available to us.
This thesis studies the interaction between two-and three-level systems and strong, coherent radio-frequency (rf) electrom agnetic fields.The investigations were carried out in both the frequency domain, where steady state properties are examined, and the time domain, where transient behaviours are studied.The two-and three-level systems studied arise from the nuclear spin I = 1 triplet within the 3 A ground state of the nitrogen-vacancy (N-V) centre in diamond.The nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is detected optically using a coherent optical-rf double resonance Raman heterodyne technique.Owing to the unique features of both the nuclear spin triplet and the detection technique, many interesting experimental results have been obtained.The thesis is comprised of four parts.Part 1 includes Chapters 1 to 3, which provides introductory accounts.The two-level system concept and associated theoretical treatments in the density matrix formalism are introduced in Chapter 1.The theory is given in a very general form and is developed later in relevant chapters for specific situations.Chapter 2 gives an introduction to the N-V centre and its electronic and hyperfine energy levels.The Raman heterodyne technique and the experimental details are described in Chapter 3.In Part 2, consisting of Chapters 4 and 5, the nuclear magnetic transition of interest is characterized.Chapter 4 describes various coherent transient observations including nutation, free-induction-decay (FID), spin echo, spin locking, delayed FID, and rotary echo, from which important parameters such as the transition strength, population decay time T 1? and dephasing time T2 can be deduced.The dependence of these parameters upon the wave function mixing due to the level anti-crossing is discussed in Chapter 5.Part 3 is the most significant part of the thesis and consists of Chapters 6 to 9. In these chapters the interaction of a two-and three-level system with electromagnetic fields are studied in the frequency domain using pump-probe spectroscopy.This technique involves driving the systems with a strong (pump) field and monitoring it with a separate (probe) field.The absorption and dispersion profiles of a driven two-level system probed by a weak field are discussed in Chapter 6. Topics include the dynamic "Stark" effect and amplification without inversion.When the probe intensity is increased from weak to strong, multiphoton transitions and multiphoton gain without inversion are observed.These effects are described in Chapter 7. When the pump and probe fields interact separately with two transitions which share one common level the two-level system is extended to a three-level one.The power broadening of the Autler-Townes spectrum in such a three-level system is the topic presented in Chapter 8. Chapter 9 considers the case where there are two strong fields and a weak probe field.The discussion is in terms of the dressed state picture and it is shown that the dressed state can be also dressed.Experimental results of the transient nutation in dressed states are presented in part 4 which consists of Chapter 10.The dressed states transition strength is determined for the first time experimentally.Finally, Chapter 11 presents a summary of this thesis.
Electromagnetically Induced Transparency (EIT) has proven to be an invaluable resource for numerous applications in quantum technology, specifically in quantum memories, quantum repeaters, and quantum sensors. EIT also has significant applications in fundamental physics and nonlinear optics. Given that EIT is a foundational component of future quantum technology, a comprehensive understanding of its parameters is essential for the development of future devices. This thesis focuses on the transient dynamics of EIT, specifically examining oscillations in the absorption of the Probe Field (PF) as a means to determine the decoherence of the ground states. Transient EIT has been explored in previous theoretical and experimental studies across various systems, including Cold Atoms (CAs) and hot vapor media. Here, transient EIT is studied theoretically, numerically, and experimentally. Parameter exploration has been conducted to understand the effects of different parameters on the transient behavior of EIT and to identify which decoherence mechanisms have the most significant impact on the quality of EIT. Experimentally, we explored a hot atomic vapour of, naturally abundant Rubidium (Rb) atoms. Additionally, progress towards constructing a CAs system, using a Magneto-Optical Trap (MOT) from scratch was made, opening the door to future studies of this system.