Arbitrary Instantaneous Bandwidth Microwave Receiver via Scalable Rydberg Vapor Cell Array with Stark Comb

Abstract

Rydberg atoms have great potential for microwave (MW) measurements due to their high sensitivity, broad carrier bandwidth, and traceability. However, the narrow instantaneous bandwidth of the MW receiver limits its applications. Improving the instantaneous bandwidth of the receiver is an ongoing challenge. Here, we report on the achievement of an arbitrary instantaneous bandwidth MW receiver via a linear array of scalable Rydberg vapor cells with Stark comb, where the Stark comb consists of an MW frequency comb (MFC) and a position-dependent Stark field. In the presence of the Stark field, the resonance MW transition frequency between two Rydberg states is position dependent, so that we can make each MFC line act as a local oscillator (LO) field to resonantly couple one Rydberg cell. Thus, each cell receives part of a broadband MW signal within its instantaneous bandwidth using atomic heterodyne detection, achieving the measurements of the broadband MW signal simultaneously. In our proof-of-principle experiment, we demonstrate the MW receiver with 210~MHz instantaneous bandwidth using an MFC field with 21 lines. Meanwhile, we achieve an overall sensitivity of 326.6~nVcm$^{-1}$Hz$^{-1/2}$. In principle, the method allows for achieving an arbitrary instantaneous bandwidth of the receiver, provided we have enough MFC lines with enough power. Our work paves the way to design and develop a scalable MW receiver for applications in radar, communication, and spectrum monitoring.