arXiv subjects

Vasant Natarajan

Publications and source records attributed to Vasant Natarajan.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2021

Hyperfine measurement of $6\text{P}_{1/2}$ state in $^{87}\text{Rb}$ using double resonance on blue and IR transition

In this paper, we present the spectroscopy of 6P$_{1/2}$ state in $^{87}$Rb using double resonance technique at $780~\text{nm}$ and $421~\text{nm}$. The double resonance technique is implemented using electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) and optical pumping methods. Using these spectroscopy methods, we have measured the hyperfine splitting of 6P$_{1/2}$ state with precision of $<$400~kHz which agrees well with other spectroscopy methods such as electrical discharge and saturated absorption spectroscopy at $421~\text{nm}$.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2020

Observation of electromagnetically induced absorption in a vee + ladder system

We experimentally demonstrate electromagnetically induced absorption (EIA) in a vee + ladder system. The experiment is done using the low-lying energy levels of $^{87}$Rb. A theoretical model of the system is made that reproduces the experimental results. We study the dependence of the characteristics of the EIA resonance on various combinations of the different control powers. We also explore the contribution of various incoherent phenomena that affect the EIA signal.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2019

Laser interferometry based on atomic coherence

We demonstrate laser interferometry based on phase difference between the two arms of the interferometer. The experiments are done with a Cs atomic vapor cell at room temperature and use atomic coherence. The interference can be tuned from constructive to destructive by tuning the relative phase between the two arms. It is similar to the Michelson interferometer, but differs in the important aspect of allowing interference when the polarizations in the two arms are orthogonal. This would be a novel method for interfering two independent lasers, which even can allow interfering two independent lasers of completely different wavelengths---such as of UV and IR---and also possibly phase lock them.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2019

Observation of CPT for the ground hyperfine interval in $^{133}$Cs

We use the technique of coherent population trapping (CPT) to access the ground hyperfine interval (clock transition) in $^{133}$Cs. The probe and control beams required for CPT are obtained from a single compact diode laser system. The phase coherence between the beams, whose frequency difference is the clock frequency, is obtained by frequency modulating the laser with an electro-optic modulator (EOM). The EOM is fiber coupled and hence does not require alignment, and the atoms are contained in a vapor cell. Both of these should prove advantageous for potential use as atomic clocks in satellites.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2018

Tuning of the Hanle effect from EIT to EIA using spatially separated probe and control beams

We demonstrate a technique for continuous tuning of the Hanle effect from electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) to electromagnetically induced absorption (EIA) by changing the polarization ellipticity of a control beam. In contrast to previous work in this field, we use spatially separated probe and control beams. The experiments are done using magnetic sublevels of the $ F_g = 4 \rightarrow F_e = 5 $ closed hyperfine transition in the 852 nm D$_2$ line of $^{133}$Cs. The atoms are contained in a room temperature vapor cell with anti-relaxation (paraffin) coating on the walls. The paraffin coating is necessary for the atomic coherence to be transported between the beams. The experimental results are supported by a density-matrix analysis of the system, which also explains the observed amplitude and zero-crossing of the resonances. Such continuous tuning of the sign of a resonance has important applications in quantum memory and other precision measurements.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2018

Study of EIT resonances in an anti-relaxation coated Rb vapor cell

We demonstrate---experimentally and theoretically---that resonances obtained in electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) can be both bright and dark. The experiments are done using magnetic sublevels of a hyperfine transition in the D$_1$ line of $^{87}$Rb. The degeneracy of the sublevels is removed by having a magnetic field of value 27 G. The atoms are contained in a room-temperature vapor cell with anti-relaxation coating on the walls. Theoretical analysis based on a two-region model reproduces the experimental spectrum quite well. This ability to have both bright and dark resonances promises applications in sub- and super-luminal propagation of light, and sensitive magnetometry.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2018

Study of CPO resonances on the intercombination line in $^{173}$Yb

We study coherent population oscillations (CPO) in an odd isotope of the two-electron atom Yb. The experiments are done using magnetic sublevels of the $ F_g = 5/2 \rightarrow F_e = 3/2 $ hyperfine transition in $^{173}$Yb of the $ {\rm {^1S_0} \rightarrow {^3P_1}} $ intercombination line. The experiments are done both with and without an appied magnetic field. In the absence of an applied field, the complicated sublevel structure along with the saturated fluorescence effect causes the linewidth to be larger than the 190 kHz natural linewidth of the transition. In the presence of a field (of magnitude 330 mG), a well-defined quantization axis is present which results in the formation of two M-type systems. The total fluorescence is then limited by spin coherence among the ground sublevels. In addition, the pump beam gets detuned from resonance which results in a reduced scattering rate from the $ {\rm ^3P_1} $ state. Both of these effects result in a reduction of the linewidth to a subnatural value of about 100 kHz.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2017

Polarization dependent tuning of the Hanle effect in the ground state of Cs

We demonstrate that the Hanle effect can be tuned between magnetically induced absorption (MIA) and magnetically induced transmission (MIT) simply by changing the polarization of the input laser beam. The experiments are done using closed hyperfine transitions of the $ \rm D_2 $ line of ${\rm ^{133}Cs}$ ---$ F_g = 3 \rightarrow F_e = 2 $ and $ F_g =4 \rightarrow F_e = 5 $. The former shows a transformation from MIT to MIA, while the latter shows the opposite behavior. A qualitative explanation based on optical pumping and coherences among the magnetic sublevels of the ground state is borne out by a detailed density-matrix calculation. To increase the coherence time, the experiments are done in a Cs vapor cell with paraffin coating on the walls. The observed linewidth is extremely narrow ($\sim 0.1$ mG) compared to previous work in this area, making this a promising technique for all kinds of precision measurements.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2017

Measurement of hyperfine structure in the $ \rm D_1 $ line of Rb

We report a precise measurement of hyperfine constants in the $\rm{D_1} $ line ($ \rm {5\,P_{1/2}} $ state) of the two stable isotopes of Rb. The motivation for the work is to try and resolve discrepant values that exists in the literature. We use a technique that is different from other methods---one where the laser is not locked to a particular transition but scanned around it. This is advantageous because it overcomes frequency shifts due to servo-loop errors and other sources of noise in the experiment. The values in the two isotopes are: $ A = 120.510(26) $ MHz in $\rm {^{85}Rb}$, and $ A = 408.340(19) $ MHz in $\rm {^{87}Rb}$. These values are at variance with earlier values reported from our lab, but consistent with other published measurements.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2017

Coherent population pumping in a bright state

We demonstrate resonances due to coherent population pumping in a bright state (CBS), using magnetic sublevels of the closed $ F_g = 2 \rightarrow F_e = 3 $ transition in $^{87}$Rb. The experiments are performed at room temperature vapor in two kinds of cells---one that is pure and the second that contains a buffer gas of Ne at 20 torr. We also present the effect of pump power variation on the CBS linewidth, and explain the behavior by using a power-dependent scattering rate. The experimentally observed CBS resonances are supported by a density-matrix analysis of the system.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2017

Finding the number density of atomic vapor by studying its absorption profile

We demonstrate a technique for obtaining the density of atomic vapor, by doing a fit of the resonant absorption spectrum to a density-matrix model. In order to demonstrate the usefulness of the technique, we apply it to absorption in the ${\rm D_2}$ line of a Cs vapor cell at room temperature. The lineshape of the spectrum is asymmetric due to the role of open transitions. This asymmetry is explained in the model using transit-time relaxation as the atoms traverse the laser beam. We also obtain the latent heat of evaporation by studying the number density as a function of temperature close to room temperature.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2017

Precise measurement of hyperfine structure in the $ \rm {3\,S_{1/2}} $ state of $ \rm{^7Li} $

We report a precise measurement of hyperfine structure in the $ \rm {3\,S_{1/2}} $ state of the odd isotope of Li, namely $ \rm {^7Li} $. The state is excited from the ground $ \rm {2\,S_{1/2}} $ state (which has the same parity) using two single-photon transitions via the intermediate $ \rm {2\,P_{3/2}} $ state. The value of the hyperfine constant we measure is $ A = 93.095(52)$ MHz, which resolves two discrepant values reported in the literature measured using other techniques. Our value is also consistent with theoretical calculations.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2017

Coherent population trapping (CPT) versus electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT)

We discuss the differences between two well-studied and related phenomena---coherent population trapping (CPT) and electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). Many differences between the two---such as the effect of power in the beams, detuning of the beams from resonance, and the use of vapor cells filled with buffer gas---are demonstrated experimentally. The experiments are done using magnetic sublevels of the $ 1 \rightarrow 1 $ transition in the D$_2$ line of $^{87}$Rb.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2017

Sub- and super-luminal light propagation using a Rydberg state

We present a theoretical study to investigate sub- and super-luminal light propagation in a rubidium atomic system consisting of a Rydberg state by using density matrix formalism. The analysis is performed in a 4-level vee+ladder system interacting with a weak probe, and strong control and switching fields. The dispersion and absorption profiles are shown for stationary atoms as well as for moving atoms by carrying out Doppler averaging at room temperature. We also present the group index variation with control Rabi frequency and observe that a transparent medium can be switched from sub- to super-luminal propagation in the presence of switching field. Finally, the transient response of the medium is discussed, which shows that the considered 4-level scheme has potential applications in absorptive optical switching.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Permanent EDM measurement in Cs using nonlinear magneto-optic rotation

We use the technique of chopped nonlinear magneto-optic rotation (NMOR) in a room temperature $^{133}$Cs vapor cell to measure the permanent electric dipole moment (EDM) in the atom. The cell has paraffin coating on the walls to increase the relaxation time. The signature of the EDM is a shift in the Larmor precession frequency which is correlated with the application of an E field. We analyze errors in the technique, and show that the main source of systematic error is the appearance of a longitudinal B field when the E field is applied. This error can be eliminated by doing measurements on the two ground hyperfine levels. Using an E field of 2.6 kV/cm, we place an upper limit on the electron EDM of $ 2.9 \times 10^{-22} $ e-cm ($95 \%$ confidence). This limit can be increased by 7 orders-of-magnitude---and brought below the current best experimental value---with easily implementable improvements to the technique.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2016

Role of dressed-state interference in electromagnetically induced transparency

Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) in three-level systems uses a strong control laser on one transition to modify the absorption of a weak probe laser on a second transition. The control laser creates dressed states whose decay pathways show interference. We study the role of dressed-state interference in causing EIT in the three types of three-level systems -- lambda ($Λ$), ladder ($Ξ$), and vee (V). In order to get realistic values for the linewidths of the energy levels involved, we consider appropriate hyperfine levels of $^{87}$Rb. For such realistic systems, we find that dressed-state interference causes probe absorption---given by the imaginary part of the susceptibility---to go to zero in a $Λ$ system, but plays a negligible role in $Ξ$ and V systems.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Generation of a cold pulsed beam of Rb atoms by transfer from a 3D magneto-optic trap

We demonstrate a technique for producing a cold pulsed beam of atoms by transferring a cloud of atoms trapped in a three dimensional magneto-optic trap (MOT). The MOT is loaded by heating a getter source of Rb atoms. We show that it is advantageous to transfer with two beams (with a small angle between them) compared to a single beam, because the atoms stop interacting with the beams in the two-beam technique, which results in a Gaussian velocity distribution. The atoms are further cooled in optical molasses by turning off the MOT magnetic field before the transfer beams are turned on.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2016

Wavelength mismatch effect in electromagnetically induced absorption

We present a theoretical investigation of the phenomenon of electromagnetically induced absorption (EIA) in a 4-level system consisting of vee and ladder subsystems. The four levels are coupled using one weak probe field, and two strong control fields. We consider an experimental realization using energy levels of Rb. This necessitates dealing with different conditions of wavelength mismatch---near-perfect match where all three wavelengths are approximately equal; partial mismatch where the wavelength of one control field is less than the other fields; and complete mismatch where all three wavelengths are unequal. We present probe absorption profiles with Doppler averaging at room temperature to account for experiments in a room temperature Rb vapor cell. Our analysis shows that EIA resonances can be studied using Rydberg states excited with diode lasers.

physics.atom-ph↗