We have developed an effective mathematical model to calculate the coherent population trapping (CPT) resonance in periodically modulated light, when the modulation frequency
f varies near the fractional part of hyperfine splitting in the ground state
Δhfs/N (where
N=1,2,...). In such polychromatic field, only two frequency components that are most resonant with atomic optical transitions are taken into account accurately, while all other off-resonant components are taken into account using the second-order perturbation theory in the field. Within the presented concept, equation for atomic density matrix is obtained, in which the contribution of all off-resonant components is reduced to the appearance of two new operators (non-diagonal, in general case): the shift operator and relaxation operators. In the case of three-level
Λ-system, the adequacy of presented effective model was verified by numerical calculations of various dependencies, in which we did not find visual differences from the exact calculations. In addition to a significant mathematical simplification, our model provides a clear physical picture of various features of CPT spectroscopy in a periodically modulated laser field, including effects that have not been discussed in the scientific literature before. In particular, we show that the widespread viewpoint that the CPT resonance shift is determined by usual ac Stark shifts of the lower levels is, in general, fundamentally incorrect, since the contribution to the light shift due to beats at the frequency
Δhfs between different off-resonant frequency components can be comparable (or even dominate) with the standard ac Stark shift. Therefore, even if we have detailed information on the modulated field spectrum (e.g. using a spectrum analyzer), this is, in general, absolutely insufficient to determine the light shift of CPT resonance.
Motivated by recent developments in atomic frequency standards employing the effect of coherent population trapping (CPT), we propose a theoretical framework for the frequency modulation spectroscopy of the CPT resonances. Under realistic assumptions we provide simple yet non-trivial analytical formulae for the major spectroscopic signals such as the CPT resonance line and the in-phase/quadrature responses. We discuss the influence of the light shift and, in particular, derive a simple expression for the displacement of the resonance as a function of modulation index. The performance of the model is checked against numerical simulations, the agreement is good to perfect. The obtained results can be used in more general models accounting for light absorption in the thick optical medium.
We have developed and tested an efficient mathematical model for calculating a coherent population trapping (CPT) resonance in a periodically modulated laser field when the modulation frequency
f is close to the fractional part of the hyperfine splitting frequency (HFS) in the ground state ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\mathrm{HFS}}/N$ (where
N=1,2,3,…). In such a polychromatic light, only two frequency components that are most resonant with the working optical transitions in the atom are taken into account exactly, while all other off-resonant frequency components are taken into account by using the second-order perturbation theory in the field magnitude. Within the framework of our concept, an equation for the atomic density matrix is obtained, in which all off-resonant frequency components are described by two operators (which are nondiagonal in the general case): a shift operator and a relaxation operator. This model has been verified by numerical calculations for various dependencies, in which we have not found visual differences from the results of exact calculations. Thus, in our bichromatic model, the infinite variety of periodically modulated fields in CPT spectroscopy can be uniformly described by only five parameters. In addition to a significant mathematical simplification, our model provides a clear physical picture of the various features of CPT spectroscopy in a periodically modulated laser field, including some effects that have not yet been discussed in the scientific literature. In particular, we show a widespread viewpoint that the CPT resonance shift is determined by standard ac Stark shifts of the lower levels is, in general, fundamentally incorrect, since the contribution to the light shift due to beats at the frequency ${\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Delta}}}_{\mathrm{HFS}}$ between different off-resonant frequency components can be comparable to the value of standard ac Stark shift (or even dominate it). Therefore, even if we have detailed information on the spectral composition of the modulated field (e.g., using a spectrum analyzer), this is, in general, absolutely insufficient for determining the light shift of the CPT resonance.
A systematic semi-analytical study of the coherent population trapping resonance is presented. The emphasis is put on quantifying the importance of different experimental factors potentially affecting the shape of the resonance, and especially the magnitude and structure of the light shift. In particular, we consider the impact of FM modulation, spectrum asymmetry, light detuning, and an optically thick atomic medium. The proposed model allows for a quick and reliable check whether a zero light shift can be reached in a realistic experimental setting. The results of modeling are compared with the experiment carried out with a diode laser (vertical-cavity surface emitting laser) and 87Rb atoms.
A new source of two diode laser beams, spatially separated but optically phase-locked with each other, is used to study the modulation transfer spectroscopy of coherent population trapping resonance (CPT). The spectrum for the (87)Rb D2 line is obtained with narrow linewidth and high signal-to-noise ratio, and analyzed with different experimental parameters. A theoretical analysis of the CPT modulation transfer spectra is deduced from the density matrix equation of motion, and found to be in good agreement with the experimental results.