Spatial dynamics of laser-induced fluorescence in an intense laser beam: experiment and theory in alkali metal atoms

Abstract

We have shown that it is possible to model accurately optical phenomena in intense laser fields by taking into account the intensity distribution over the laser beam. We developed a theoretical model that divided an intense laser beam into concentric regions, each with a Rabi frequency that corresponds to the intensity in that region, and solved a set of coupled optical Bloch equations for the density matrix in each region. Experimentally obtained magneto-optical resonance curves for the $F_g=2⟶F_e=1$ transition of the $D_1$ line of ${}^{87}$Rb agreed very well with the theoretical model up to a laser intensity of around 200 mW/cm${}^2$ for a transition whose saturation intensity is around 4.5 mW/cm${}^2$. We have studied the spatial dependence of the fluorescence intensity in an intense laser beam experimentally and theoretically. An experiment was conducted whereby a broad, intense pump laser excited the $F_g=4⟶F_e=3$ transition of the $D_2$ line of cesium while a weak, narrow probe beam scanned the atoms within the pump beam and excited the $D_1$ line of cesium, whose fluorescence was recorded as a function of probe beam position. Experimentally obtained spatial profiles of the fluorescence intensity agreed qualitatively with the predictions of the model.

8 pages, 9 figures

References in corpus (5)

• Saturation effects in the sub-Doppler spectroscopy of Cesium vapor confined in an Extremely Thin Cell
• F-resolved Magneto-optical Resonances at D1 Excitation of Cesium: Experiment and Theory
• Conversion of bright magneto-optical resonances into dark at fixed laser frequency for D2 excitation of atomic rubidium
• Enhancement of level-crossing resonances in rubidium atoms by frequency control of the exciting radiation field
• Relaxation mechanisms affecting magneto-optical resonances in an extremely thin cell: experiment and theory for the cesium D${}_1$ line

Cited by in corpus (1)

• Angular momentum alignment-to-orientation conversion in the ground state of Rb atoms at room temperature