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Optics Express

Propagation of Gaussian vortex beams in electromagnetically induced transparency media

Yong Wang, Miaojun Guo, Jinze Wu, Jinhong Liu, Xudong Yang, Jinhong Li

Published Oct 31, 2022• 10 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) is an important phenomenon in quantum optics, and has a wide range of applications in the fields of quantum information processing and quantum precision metrology. Recently, with the rapid progress of the generation and detection of structured light, the EIT with structured light has attracted enormous interests and offers new and novel functionalities and applications. Here, we theoretically study the propagation and evolution of Gaussian vortex beams, a typical type of structured light, in an EIT medium with Λ-type three-level atoms. Based on the generalized Huygens-Fresnel principle, we derive the analytical expressions of fully and partially coherent Gaussian vortex beams propagating in the EIT medium, and study the evolution of the intensity and phase distributions of the beams and their dependencies on parameters such topological charge, coherence length, Rabi frequency, etc. It is shown that both the fully and partially coherent Gaussian vortex beams undergo focusing and diverging periodically during propagation. The phase singularity of the fully coherent beam keeps unchanged, while the phase singularity of the partially coherent beam experiences splitting and recombination periodically. In addition, new phase singularities with opposite topological charge are generated in the latter case. Our results not only advance the study of the interaction between structured light and coherent media, but also pave the avenue for manipulating structured light via EIT.

DOI
10.1364/oe.472845

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Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) is an important phenomenon in quantum optics, and has a wide range of applications in the fields of quantum information processing and quantum precision metrology. Recently, with the rapid progress of the generation and detection of structured light, the EIT with structured light has attracted enormous interests and offers new and novel functionalities and applications. Here, we theoretically study the propagation and evolution of Gaussian vortex beams, a typical type of structured light, in an EIT medium with Λ-type three-level atoms. Based on the generalized Huygens-Fresnel principle, we derive the analytical expressions of fully and partially coherent Gaussian vortex beams propagating in the EIT medium, and study the evolution of the intensity and phase distributions of the beams and their dependencies on parameters such topological charge, coherence length, Rabi frequency, etc. It is shown that both the fully and partially coherent Gaussian vortex beams undergo focusing and diverging periodically during propagation. The phase singularity of the fully coherent beam keeps unchanged, while the phase singularity of the partially coherent beam experiences splitting and recombination periodically. In addition, new phase singularities with opposite topological charge are generated in the latter case. Our results not only advance the study of the interaction between structured light and coherent media, but also pave the avenue for manipulating structured light via EIT.
Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) is a fundamental effect in quantum optics, providing a versatile platform for quantum technologies. A growing frontier is the integration of EIT with structured light, particularly vortex beams. Extending this to the spatiotemporal domain, we herein study the propagation and evolution of spatiotemporal optical vortex (STOV) beams in an EIT medium. We derive an analytical solution for the evolved STOV field and its stability criterion, and analyze the propagation dynamics with a primary focus on the evolution of the phase singularity. Following the splitting of the initial multi-charge STOV phase singularity upon propagation, the dynamics of the resultant first-order phase singularities are governed by the interplay of first-order loss dispersion (FLD), second-order loss dispersion (SLD), and group velocity dispersion (GVD) of the EIT medium. FLD dictates their overall directional shift, while SLD governs their mutual separation. Under normal GVD, the phase singularities evolve into parallel π -phase step lines and subsequently undergo a topological charge reversal; under zero GVD, only π -phase step lines are formed without topological charge reversal; both transitions are absent under anomalous GVD. These transitions occur in the far zone when the STOV’s center frequency lies within the EIT window, whereas around the absorption peak, they occur at a distance just prior to the critical point beyond which the field collapses. Furthermore, we establish the condition under which the splitting of the initial multi-charge STOV phase singularity is entirely suppressed throughout propagation. STOVs carry intrinsic transverse orbital angular momentum (OAM), providing a new, orthogonal dimension for photonic encoding beyond the conventional longitudinal OAM of spatial optical vortices. Integrating STOVs with EIT merges this robust quantum resource with a platform for coherent dispersion engineering, enabling high-dimensional quantum information processing in a vastly expanded state space that combines both longitudinal and transverse OAM.
Abstract This study investigates the propagation properties of two-dimensional Airy vortex beams in an electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) medium, based on a four-level rubidium atomic vapor system controlled by dual coupling Rabi frequencies. By establishing the ABCD transmission matrix of the EIT medium and employing the Collins integral formula, analytical expression for the propagation of the Airy vortex beam in the EIT medium is derived. Using the obtained analytical solution, this study further examines the beam’s intensity distribution, phase evolution characteristics, and their dependencies on several key parameters such as transverse scale, truncation factor, and vortex center position. Results demonstrate that the intensity of the Airy vortex beam can be modulated by the coupling Rabi frequency: with the change of the coupling Rabi frequency, the Airy vortex beam will be focused, and the main lobe will form a quasi-focus, accompanied by the reproduction of phase singularities. Moreover, the transverse deflection of the beam will be reduced when the coupled Rabi frequency is increased. At the same time, the vortex position, truncation factor and transverse scale also affect the field intensity distribution of the beam. These research results could have potential application value in the fields of optical bullets and optical micromanipulation.
In the burgeoning field of light-matter interactions, angular momentum has emerged as a pivotal factor, driving innovative research directions. This study delves into the interaction dynamics between vortex lights and an electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) medium, with a primary focus on elucidating the underlying mechanism of angular momentum transfer. Through comprehensive theoretical analysis and numerical simulations, it is demonstrated that when the probe field carries orbital angular momentum (OAM), the dispersion and absorption characteristics of the EIT medium undergo periodic modulation. This modulation is intricately determined by the azimuthal phase and topological charge of the beam. Notably, the OAM in the driving field exerts no such influence on the medium's properties. Leveraging vortex phase plates (VPPs) or spatial light modulators (SLMs) to manipulate the tunable OAM enables dynamic control over the EIT effect. This breakthrough not only deepens our understanding of light-matter interactions at the quantum level but also unlocks new avenues for high-dimensional quantum information processing and advanced optical communication technologies.
Propagation of generalized multi-Gaussian correlated Schell-model (GMGCSM) beams through four-level electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) atomic vapor is investigated for the first time. Analytical expression for the GMGCSM beam passing through an ABCD optical system of EIT vapor is deduced and employed to analyze its propagation properties. It is demonstrated that intensity evolution of the targeted GMGCSM beam through EIT atomic vapor is dependent on the coupling Rabi frequency of the control light, the beam’s index and coherence length. Moreover, analysis shows that degree of coherence of the beam can also be regulated by the coupling Rabi frequency. Additionally, it is shown that, selecting appropriate coherence length, GMGCSM beams of the first kind would form a shift from a dark-centered distribution known as “optical cage”, to a peak-centered distribution; GMGCSM beams of the second kind would shift from a flat-topped distribution to a Gaussian distribution. Therefore, EIT atomic vapor provides a method to regulate the coherence of partially coherent beams. Results obtained here could be expected applications in free-space optical communications, material thermal processing, and optical trapping.
We investigate theoretically a scheme for all-optical generation of structured light beams with and without a microwave field in an electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) medium composed of rubidium atoms. In a conventional EIT system, two optical fields (namely, a strong control field and a weak probe field) drive two electric-dipole-allowed transitions of an atom to form a three-level system in a $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Lambda}}$ configuration. At EIT resonance, we found that a Laguerre-Gaussian (LG) control beam induces a radial modulation of probe's absorption profile in such way that a Gaussian probe beam is reshaped into a hollow-Gaussian beam following the position-selective absorption. The transmitted probe beam has a doughnut-shaped intensity structure similar to that LG beam whereas the phase profile is still a spherical wave. Moreover, the presence of a microwave field between two ground states of three-level system leads to a closed-loop system, and probe response is modified with an additional term proportional to the amplitudes of Rabi frequencies of control and microwave fields, and relative phase of three fields. This term acts as driving field which is responsible for the generation of a vortex probe beam having a helical phase profile. We have further shown that the amplitude and helical phase of generated vortex beam can be manipulated by changing the relative phase of applied fields and temperature of the vapor cell. The present study may provide a useful tool for creation of structured light beams with and without orbital angular momentum.
We conduct theoretical investigations into a fundamental closed-loop Λ-type atomic system using 87 Rb atoms, aiming to efficiently generate and manipulate structured light beams. A phase-singular microwave (MW) beam with a topological charge l μ and a phase-singular optical probe beam with a topological charge l p collectively induce phase-dependent atomic coherence, resulting in periodic oscillations of probe absorption in the transverse plane. The number of absorption or transparency windows in the transverse plane is determined by the resultant topological charge of the system, denoted as l = l μ − l p . We investigate the propagation of a paraxial doughnut-shaped probe beam through the phase-dependent atomic medium and showcase the generation of petal-like structured beams for various combinations of l μ and l p . We provide a detailed theoretical explanation of these results using the analytical expression of probe susceptibility. We outline how this scheme effectively serves as a sensor adept at discerning particular OAM modes. This selective detection capability is valuable in scenarios where only certain OAM states carry relevant information. The relative phase between the interacting fields can be used to rotate the structured probe beam by 360 deg in the clockwise or counterclockwise direction. This manipulation of spatial position of different OAM modes can be employed in implementing OAM-based logical operations.