In Chap. 1 we introduced the Schrodinger equation and gave solutions for a number of simple cases. The general solution was then obtained by a linear superposition of these solutions. In our work, we are particularly concerned with the way in which atomic systems interact with electromagnetic radiation. These systems are still described by wave functions given by superpositions of simple solutions, but the expansion coefficients Cn (probability amplitudes) become functions of time. In this chapter we derive equations of motion for the expansion coefficients using Schrddinger’s equation and introduce the electric-dipole interaction energy. Then, specializing to a two-level system and a monochromatic electromagnetic field, we solve the equations of motion both by time-dependent perturbation theory and by the more exact Rabi method.
In Chap. 1 we introduced the Schrodinger equation and gave solutions for a number of simple cases. The general solution was then obtained by a linear superposition of these solutions. In our work, we are particularly concerned with the way in which atomic systems interact with electromagnetic radiation. These systems are still described by wave functions given by superpositions of simple solutions, but the expansion coefficients Cn (probability amplitudes) become functions of time. In this chapter we derive equations of motion for the expansion coefficients using Schrddinger’s equation and introduce the electric-dipole interaction energy. Then, specializing to a two-level system and a monochromatic electromagnetic field, we solve the equations of motion both by time-dependent perturbation theory and by the more exact Rabi method.
This chapter is devoted to an introduction to atomic physics which will be mainly concerned with one-electron atoms. After a brief discussion of the perturbation and variational methods in Section 14.1, in Section 14.2 we study the fine and hyperfine structure of the energy levels as well as the effect of a magnetic field on these levels. In Section 14.3 we examine the coupling of an atom to an electromagnetic field and important applications of this coupling such as the photoelectric effect and the rate of spontaneous emission. In Section 14.4 we give a brief introduction to a subject which has been expanding enormously in the last twenty years, the laser manipulation of atoms, and we discuss Doppler cooling and magneto-optical traps. Finally, Section 14.5 is devoted to a short discussion of two-electron atoms. Approximation methods Generalities In classical physics it is only in exceptional cases that it is possible to solve the Newton or Maxwell equations analytically given the initial conditions at time t = t 0 and, in the first case, the forces, or, in the second, the sources of electromagnetic field. In general, it is necessary to resort to an approximation method such as numerical integration of the equations, the perturbation method, or something else. The situation is no different in quantum physics: only in exceptional cases do we know how to “solve the Schrödinger equation” exactly, that is, how to obtain the time evolution of the state vector |ϕ( t 〉 as a function of its value |ϕ( t 0 〉 at initial time t = t 0 .
How to deal with time-dependent potentials, what kinds of physical problems having time-dependent potentials can be solved exactly and which are to be solved with the use of perturbation theory, what are different possible forms of time-dependent perturbating fields, and semi-classical treatment of the interaction of fields with matter are the subject matters of this chapter. First order perturbation theory, computation of transition probability, transition rates and Fermi's Golden Rule for harmonic and constant perturbations, absorption, stimulated emission and dipole approximation when electromagnetic fields interact with matter, spontaneous emission and Einstein coefficients, and dipole selection rules are other topics which are dealt with in detail in the chapter. Discussions with properly justified mathematical treatment on time-dependent potentials and on the exactly solvable time-dependent two-state systems are the special foci of this chapter.
The interaction of electromagnetic fields with atomic/molecular systems is the genesis of most optical phenomena observed to date. To explain these effects, we need two broad classifications based on both classical and quantum theories. This strategy involves treating (1) fields as classical systems and atoms as quantum systems having discrete energy, (2) fields as quantum systems (particles rather than waves) and atomic systems as classical, or (3) both as quantum systems. Of course, schemes 1 and 2 are easy to solve and visualize, while scheme 3 is the most accurate description but complex in nature. In general, quantum approaches do not lead to exact solutions and require assumptions and simplifications to achieve a reasonably approximate solution. Thus, it is important to choose an appropriate strategy for solving a particular problem. The problem associated with atom–field interactions will also be subjected to different strategies to understand some of the experimentally observed phenomena such as Rabi oscillations. In this chapter, we will derive a master equation that serves as the starting point for solving a large number of problems associated with atom–field interactions.
The subject of this chapter is the quantum mechanical analysis of the interaction of electromagnetic radiation with atomic transitions. The analysis is based on the Schrödinger wave equation, and in the first section, the gauge-invariant form of the external electromagnetic field is introduced. The electric dipole interaction and the long-wavelength approximation for the analysis of this interaction are discussed. The perturbative analysis of both single-photon and two-photon electric dipole interactions is presented, and density matrix analysis is introduced. The interaction of radiation with the resonances of atomic hydrogen is then discussed. The analysis is performed for both coupled and uncoupled representations. In the last section of the chapter, the radiative interactions for multielectron atoms are discussed. The Wigner–Eckart theorem and selection rules for transitions between levels characterized by coupling are developed. The effect of hyperfine splitting on radiative transitions is also briefly discussed.
In this chapter we use the Langevin (Brownian motion) method of Chap. 19 to once again treat quantum mechanically both the field and the active atoms in a laser. The present treatment comprises a Heisenberg picture approach to the problem, as compared to the approach in Chap. 17, which represents the Schrodinger picture. The two methods are in complete agreement (as they should be!), a point discussed in some detail by Lax (1968). As before, the atoms are considered to comprise systems which interact with independent pumping and dissipation reservoirs, and the laser field is regarded as another system with reservoirs. The atom and field systems are then coupled by an electric-dipole perturbation energy, as depicted schematically in Fig. 20-1.
In this chapter a quantum mechanical treatment of atomic response to the fields of an electromagnetic wave is presented. Absorption and emission of energy by atoms involves transition between their quantized energy levels driven by an interaction Hamiltonian. Schrodinger equation is used to derive the equations of motion for the density matrix of the atom, which is better suited to include the effects of mechanisms other than the interaction Hamiltonian – collisions, level decays, level shifts, etc. that also affect the state of the atom. Using the density matrix equation of motion and focusing on two atomic levels, induced dipole moment for a single two-level atom and polarization and susceptibility for a collection of two-level atoms, including the effects of level decays, and collisions, are calculated. Equations of motion for level populations are also derived. These expressions naturally predict stimulated emission as well as absorption. Expressed in terms of spontaneous emission rate they confirm the validity of equations derived in Chapter 5 using the dipole oscillator model of atomic response. The limit in which quantum mechanical equations for atomic response reduce to the classical dipole oscillator equations is also discussed.