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Title: Relaxation of atomic polarization in paraffin-coated cesium vapor cells

Journal Article · · Physical Review. A
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  1. Department of Physics, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720-7300 (United States)

The relaxation of atomic polarization in buffer-gas-free, paraffin-coated cesium vapor cells is studied using a variation on Franzen's technique of 'relaxation in the dark' [Franzen, Phys. Rev. 115 850 (1959)]. In the present experiment, narrow-band, circularly polarized pump light, resonant with the Cs D2 transition, orients atoms along a longitudinal magnetic field, and time-dependent optical rotation of linearly polarized probe light is measured to determine the relaxation rates of the atomic orientation of a particular hyperfine level. The change in relaxation rates during light-induced atomic desorption (LIAD) is studied. No significant change in the spin relaxation rate during LIAD is found beyond that expected from the faster rate of spin-exchange collisions due to the increase in Cs density.

OSTI ID:
20718157
Journal Information:
Physical Review. A, Vol. 72, Issue 2; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.72.023401; (c) 2005 The American Physical Society; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1050-2947
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English