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New Journal of Physics

Optically-detected spin-echo method for relaxation times measurements in a Rb atomic vapor

Mohammadreza Gharavipour, C. Affolderbach, Florian Gruet, I. S. Radojičić, Aleksandar J. Krmpot, B. M. Jelenkovic, G. Mileti

Published May 17, 2017• 10 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We introduce and demonstrate an experimental method, optically-detected spin-echo (ODSE), to measure ground-state relaxation times of a rubidium (Rb) atomic vapor held in a glass cell with buffergas.The work is motivated by our studies on high-performance Rb atomic clocks, where both population and coherence relaxation times (T 1 and T 2 , respectively) of the 'clock transition' (5) are relevant.Our ODSE method is inspired by classical nuclear magnetic resonance spin-echo method, combined with optical detection.In contrast to other existing methods, like continuous-wave double-resonance (CW-DR) and Ramsey-DR, principles of the ODSE method allow suppression of decoherence arising from the inhomogeneity of the static magnetic field across the vapor cell, thus enabling measurements of intrinsic relaxation rates, as properties of the cell alone.Our experimental result for the coherence relaxation time, specific for the clock transition, measured with the ODSE method is in good agreement with the theoretical prediction, and the ODSE results are validated by comparison to those obtained with Franzen, CW-DR and Ramsey-DR methods.The method is of interest for a wide variety of quantum optics experiments with optical signal readout.

DOI
10.1088/1367-2630/aa73c2

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•Aug 21, 1961•0 citations
We introduce and demonstrate an experimental method, optically-detected spin-echo (ODSE), to measure ground-state relaxation times of a rubidium (Rb) atomic vapor held in a glass cell with buffergas.The work is motivated by our studies on high-performance Rb atomic clocks, where both population and coherence relaxation times (T 1 and T 2 , respectively) of the 'clock transition' (5) are relevant.Our ODSE method is inspired by classical nuclear magnetic resonance spin-echo method, combined with optical detection.In contrast to other existing methods, like continuous-wave double-resonance (CW-DR) and Ramsey-DR, principles of the ODSE method allow suppression of decoherence arising from the inhomogeneity of the static magnetic field across the vapor cell, thus enabling measurements of intrinsic relaxation rates, as properties of the cell alone.Our experimental result for the coherence relaxation time, specific for the clock transition, measured with the ODSE method is in good agreement with the theoretical prediction, and the ODSE results are validated by comparison to those obtained with Franzen, CW-DR and Ramsey-DR methods.The method is of interest for a wide variety of quantum optics experiments with optical signal readout.
We apply an innovative method called Optically-Detected Spin-Echo to measure the intrinsic coherence relaxation time in the buffer-gas vapor cell of a Rb atomic clock [1]. This method suppresses the influence of static-magnetic-field-gradients across the cell which is a source of relaxation processes. Such studies are of interest for high-performance Rb atomic clocks, where both intrinsic population and coherence relaxation times (T1and T2, respectively) of the “clock transition” (52S1/2|Fg= 1, mF= 0〉 ↔ |Fg= 2, mF= 0〉) are relevant.
The spin transverse relaxation time ( T 2 ) of atoms is an important indicator for magnetic field precision measurement. Especially in optically-pumped atomic magnetometer, the linewidth of the magnetic resonance signal is one of the most important parameters of sensitivity, which is inversely correlated with T 2 of atoms. In this paper, we propose four methods, namely spin noise spectroscopy signal fitting, radio-frequency free induction decay (RF-FID) signal fitting, ω m (modulation frequency)-broadening fitting, and magnetic resonance broadening fitting, for in-situ measurement T 2 of atomic vapor cells based on light-atom interactions. Meanwhile, T 2 of three Rubidium (Rb) atomic vapor cells with different parameters are measured and discussed by using these four methods. A comparative analysis visualizes the characteristics of the different methods and the effects of buffer gas on T 2 of Rb atoms. Through theoretical and experimental analysis, we assess the applicability of each method and concluded that the RF-FID signal fitting method provides the most accurate measurements due to the timing sequence control system, which results in a cleaner measurement environment. Furthermore, we demonstrate and qualitatively analyze the relationship between temperature and T 2 of Rb atoms. This work may offer valuable insights into the selection of atomic vapor cells and it is also applicable for the spin-exchange relaxation-free region.
This thesis presents experimental studies on continuous-wave (CW) laser-microwave double-resonance (DR) spectroscopy and metrology in rubidium (87Rb) vapor cells in view of new high-performance, compact Rb-cell atomic clocks. The Rb vapor cell is confined inside a magnetron-type cavity microwave resonator (MWR). The CW DR spectroscopy involves two resonant electromagnetic fields that are operated simultaneously to interrogate the atoms - the optical field to polarize the atoms by optical pumping, and the microwave field to drive the ground-state hyperfine clock transition that serves as an atomic frequency reference. Details on characterization of compact laser heads and microwave synthesizers used in this work are presented. The vapor cell standards are useful in our everyday lives for applications ranging from telecommunications, navigation, metrology etc. In view of improving the performances of the Rb cell standards, two different clock approaches were studied in detail: The first one is on use of vapor cells (1.4 cm3) whose inner walls are coated with anti-relaxation material. A first ever wall-coated cell clock was demonstrated with good short-term frequency stability. The medium- to long-term stability was found to be limited by the temperature coefficient (TC) of the coating material itself. This work gave the insight to important features to be considered in future anti-relaxation coating materials for atomic standards. The second novel approach involves using a bigger cell (12 cm3) within a newly developed, improved MWR towards a high-performance atomic standard. Adopting a larger cell gives a higher atomic Q-factor signal that improves the short-term clock stability. In this approach, the cell was filled with 87Rb and buffer gases. With this clock, we demonstrate the state-of-the-art short-term stability of <1.4×10−13 τ−1/2. Metrological quantitative measurements on parameters influencing the medium- to long-term stability were studied in view of next generation satellite navigation systems that demand a stability level of <1×10−14 at 10 4 s (equivalent to <1 ns/day). The potential of short-term stability and understanding of the limiting factors on medium- to long-term time scales demonstrated in this study pave the way for future work towards the commercialization of high-performance Rb atomic clocks for a variety of applications.
This thesis presents experimental studies on continuous-wave (CW) laser-microwave double-resonance (DR) spectroscopy and metrology in rubidium (87Rb) vapor cells in view of new high-performance, compact Rb-cell atomic clocks. The Rb vapor cell is confined inside a magnetron-type cavity microwave resonator (MWR). The CW DR spectroscopy involves two resonant electromagnetic fields that are operated simultaneously to interrogate the atoms - the optical field to polarize the atoms by optical pumping, and the microwave field to drive the ground-state hyperfine clock transition that serves as an atomic frequency reference. Details on characterization of compact laser heads and microwave synthesizers used in this work are presented. The vapor cell standards are useful in our everyday lives for applications ranging from telecommunications, navigation, metrology etc. In view of improving the performances of the Rb cell standards, two different clock approaches were studied in detail: The first one is on use of vapor cells (1.4 cm3) whose inner walls are coated with anti-relaxation material. A first ever wall-coated cell clock was demonstrated with good short-term frequency stability. The medium- to long-term stability was found to be limited by the temperature coefficient (TC) of the coating material itself. This work gave the insight to important features to be considered in future anti-relaxation coating materials for atomic standards. The second novel approach involves using a bigger cell (12 cm3) within a newly developed, improved MWR towards a high-performance atomic standard. Adopting a larger cell gives a higher atomic Q-factor signal that improves the short-term clock stability. In this approach, the cell was filled with 87Rb and buffer gases. With this clock, we demonstrate the state-of-the-art short-term stability of <1.4×10−13 τ−1/2. Metrological quantitative measurements on parameters influencing the medium- to long-term stability were studied in view of next generation satellite navigation systems that demand a stability level of <1×10−14 at 10 4 s (equivalent to <1 ns/day). The potential of short-term stability and understanding of the limiting factors on medium- to long-term time scales demonstrated in this study pave the way for future work towards the commercialization of high-performance Rb atomic clocks for a variety of applications.
Abstract : A method for the optical observation of nutational resonance in optically pumped rubidium vapor has been studied both experimentally and theoretically. The method consists of pulsemodulating an rf magnetic field a one of the Zeeman resonance frequencies of the vapor and observing the resulting damped transient modulation in the transmitted light intensity. Of particular interest is the application of this method to a study of the spin relaxation of vapor atoms as influenced by the physical parameters of the system, in the case where the applied steady magnetic field is intense enough to cause individual Zeeman intervals to become noticeably unequal. Both single and double quantum resonances at a wide spectrum of Zeeman transitions of Rb-85 vapor diffusing through neon and helium buffer gases have been observed and identified, and the damping of the transient nutations in light intensity has been recorded under a variety of conditions. (Author)