Magnetic inhibition of polarization-gradient laser cooling in σ+ - σ− optical molasses
M. Walhout, Uwe Sterr, S. L. Rolston
Xenon atoms are released from a magneto-optical trap and equilibrate in a one-dimensional, ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\sigma}}}_{+}$-${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\sigma}}}_{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}}$ optical molasses, along which a uniform magnetic field is applied. In the rest frame of the ``corkscrew'' pattern of laser polarization, the magnetic field induces a nonzero average atomic velocity. Introducing a moving molasses through a relative difference in the two laser-beam frequencies allows straightforward, accurate measurements of the molasses-frame velocity distribution over a large range of magnetic fields. The measurements reveal the loss of polarization-gradient cooling in fields higher than \ensuremath{\sim}0.2 mT, in quantitative agreement with theoretical predictions. \textcopyright{} 1996 The American Physical Society.
Physical Review A•Sep 1, 1996•22 citations