Experimental observation of magic-wavelength behavior of {sup 87}Rb atoms in an optical lattice

Journal Article · Mon Mar 15 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · Physical Review. A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVA.81.031611· OSTI ID:21408360

Lundblad, N ^[1]; Schlosser, M ^[2]; Porto, J V ^[3]

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1. Department of Physics and Astronomy, Bates College, Lewiston, Maine 04240 (United States)
2. Institut fuer Angewandte Physik, Technische Universitaet Darmstadt, Schlossgartenstrasse 7, D-64289 Darmstadt (Germany)
3. Joint Quantum Institute, National Institute of Standards and Technology and University of Maryland, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899 (United States)

We demonstrate the cancellation of the differential ac Stark shift of the microwave hyperfine clock transition in trapped {sup 87}Rb atoms. Recent progress in metrology exploits so-called magic wavelengths, whereby an atomic ensemble can be trapped with laser light whose wavelength is chosen so that both levels of an optical atomic transition experience identical ac Stark shifts. Similar magic-wavelength techniques are not possible for the microwave hyperfine transitions in the alkali metals due to their simple electronic structure. We show, however, that ac Stark shift cancellation is indeed achievable for certain values of wavelength, polarization, and magnetic field. The cancellation comes at the expense of a small magnetic-field sensitivity. The technique demonstrated here has implications for experiments involving the precise control of optically trapped neutral atoms.

• OSTI ID: 21408360
• Journal Information: Physical Review. A, Vol. 81, Issue 3; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.81.031611; (c) 2010 The American Physical Society; ISSN 1050-2947
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ALKALI METALS
ATOMS
CONTROL
ELECTRONIC STRUCTURE
LASERS
MAGNETIC FIELDS
MICROWAVE RADIATION
POLARIZATION
RUBIDIUM 87
SENSITIVITY
TRAPPING
VISIBLE RADIATION
WAVELENGTHS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELEMENTS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
ISOTOPES
METALS
NUCLEI
ODD-EVEN NUCLEI
RADIATIONS
RADIOISOTOPES
RUBIDIUM ISOTOPES
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES