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Vacuum and Surface Science

Light-induced Desorption of Alkali-metal Atoms as a Source of Laser-cooled Atoms

A. Hatakeyama

Published Oct 9, 2020• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Light-induced atom desorption (LIAD) of alkali-metal atoms in alkali-metal vapor cells can be used to quickly increase the vapor density. It is particularly useful as a source for laser-cooled atoms. We review the studies of LIAD for alkali-metal atoms, with particular attention to its application to laser cooling experiments. We show clear differences in LIAD properties for quartz and Pyrex substrates, which are widely used materials in laser-cooling cells.

DOI
10.1380/vss.63.519

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Physical Review A•Jun 19, 2012•11 citations
Light-induced atom desorption (LIAD) of alkali-metal atoms in alkali-metal vapor cells can be used to quickly increase the vapor density. It is particularly useful as a source for laser-cooled atoms. We review the studies of LIAD for alkali-metal atoms, with particular attention to its application to laser cooling experiments. We show clear differences in LIAD properties for quartz and Pyrex substrates, which are widely used materials in laser-cooling cells.
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In recent years, light-induced atomic desorption (LIAD) of alkali atoms from the inner surface of a vacuum chamber has been employed in cold atom experiments for the purpose of modulating the alkali background vapour. This is beneficial because larger trapped atom samples can be loaded from vapour at higher pressure, after which the pressure is reduced to increase the lifetime of the sample. We present an analysis, based on the case of rubidium atoms adsorbed on pyrex, of various aspects of LIAD that are useful for this application. Firstly, we study the intensity dependence of LIAD by fitting the experimental data with a rate-equation model, from which we extract a correct prediction for the increase in trapped atom number. Following this, we quantify a figure of merit for the utility of LIAD in cold atom experiments and we show how it can be optimised for realistic experimental parameters.
This work is devoted to a systematic study of the effect of Light-Induced Atomic Desorption (LIAD). LIAD is a non-heating process in which atoms adsorbed on a surface are desorbed by illumination with non-resonant light. The aim of the dissertation is an experimental study of the LIAD process, its influence on the spectra of alkali atoms in optical cells without and with Anti-Relaxation Coating (ARC) and the possibilities of LIAD for optical characterization of ARC, as well as in high resolution spectroscopy. For the first time, the LIAD process under homogeneous illumination was investigated experimentally, whereby the efficiency of the LIAD was significantly increased even for a cell without ARC, the dynamic characteristics are obtained with a better signal to noise ratio and repeatability, and the desorption and adsorption processes are faster. LIAD effect in cells with different ARC coatings has shown that each coating has different desorption and adsorption rates and the results obtained show the possibility of applying the method for optical characterization of ARC. An experimental study of the number of collisions without atomic spin depolarization in cells with different ARCs and the impact of LIAD was performed, as well as various parameters such as laser intensity and cell temperature were investigated.
Atomic-vapor density change due to light induced atomic desorption (LIAD) is studied in paraffin-coated rubidium, cesium, sodium, and potassium cells. In the present experiment, low-intensity probe light is used to obtain an absorption spectrum and measure the vapor density, while light from an argon-ion laser, array of light emitting diodes, or discharge lamp is used for desorption. Potassium is found to exhibit significantly weaker LIAD from paraffin compared to Rb and Cs, and we were unable to observe LIAD with sodium. A simple LIAD model is applied to describe the observed vapor-density dynamics, and the role of the cell's stem is explored through the use of cells with lockable stems. Stabilization of Cs vapor density above its equilibrium value over 25min25\phantom{\rule{0.3em}{0ex}}\mathrm{min}25min is demonstrated. The results of this work could be used to assess the use of LIAD for vapor-density control in magnetometers, clocks, and gyroscopes utilizing coated cells.
We investigated the light-induced desorption (LID) of Rb atoms from quartz substrates to understand better the LID observed in alkali-metal vapor cells used in laser cooling experiments. The substrate was first exposed to Rb under ultrahigh vacuum conditions. The Rb was found to diffuse into the substrate by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Rb atoms were then deposited with a density of $\ensuremath{\sim}{10}^{15}$ atoms/cm2{}^{2}2 on the surface, from which LID was observed upon irradiation by ultraviolet light. The LID rate depended linearly on the light intensity in the investigated range up to 15 mW/cm2{}^{2}2. A typical value was 1010{10}^{10}1010 atoms/(s cm2{}^{2}2) per mW/cm2{}^{2}2 at a photon energy of 4.3 eV (290 nm in wavelength). We found that the LID rate increased with photon energy in the range 1.8--4.3 eV (700--290 nm in wavelength).