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arXiv:physics/0202046 · Physical Review Letters

Hanle Effect in Coherent Backscattering

G. Labeyrie, Christian Miniatura, Cord Axel Müller, Olivier Sigwarth, Dominique Delande, Robin Kaiser

Published Sep 26, 2002• 33 citations
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Abstract

We study the shape of the coherent-backscattering (CBS) cone obtained when resonant light illuminates a thick cloud of laser-cooled rubidium atoms in the presence of a homogenous magnetic field. We observe new magnetic field-dependent anisotropies in the CBS signal. We show that the observed behavior is due to the modification of the atomic-radiation pattern by the magnetic field (Hanle effect in the excited state).

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.89.163901

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Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE•Apr 9, 2001•0 citations
We study the shape of the coherent-backscattering (CBS) cone obtained when resonant light illuminates a thick cloud of laser-cooled rubidium atoms in the presence of a homogenous magnetic field. We observe new magnetic field-dependent anisotropies in the CBS signal. We show that the observed behavior is due to the modification of the atomic-radiation pattern by the magnetic field (Hanle effect in the excited state).
When a quasiresonant laser beam illuminates an optically thick cloud of laser-cooled rubidium atoms, the average diffuse intensity reflected off the sample is enhanced in a narrow angular range around the direction of exact backscattering. This phenomenon is known as coherent backscattering (CBS). By detuning the laser from resonance, we are able to modify the light scattering mean-free path inside the sample and we record accordingly the variations of the CBS cone shape. We then compare the experimental data with theoretical calculations and Monte Carlo simulations including the effect of the light polarization and of the internal structure of the atoms. We confirm that the internal structure strongly affects the enhancement factor of the cone and we show that the unusual shape of the atomic medium---approximately a spherically-symmetric, Gaussian density profile---strongly affects the width and shape of the cone.
Starting from a microscopic theory for atomic scatterers, we describe the scattering of light by a single atom and study the coherent propagation of light in a cold atomic cloud in the presence of a magnetic field B\mathbf{B}B in the mesoscopic regime. Nonpertubative expressions in BBB are given for the magneto-optical effects and optical anisotropy. We then consider the multiple-scattering regime and address the fate of the coherent-backscattering (CBS) effect. We show that, for atoms with nonzero spin in their ground state, the CBS interference contrast can be increased compared to its value when B=0B=0B=0, a result at variance with classical samples. We validate our theoretical results by a quantitative comparison with experimental data.
We analyze the Hanle effect on the closed Fg equals 3 yields Fe equals 4 D2-line transition of 85Rb, by both numerical solutions of the optical Bloch equations and by experimental investigations on cell containing rubidium vapor. For laser radiation with linear polarization orthogonal to the applied magnetic field, the Hanle signal is characterized by narrow bright resonances at low laser intensities. A bright resonance Hanle signal is obtained also exciting the rubidium atoms by circularly polarized laser light and scanning a transversely applied magnetic field, at different values of an applied longitudinal magnetic field. We report experimental and numerical evidence of this new bright resonance.