Optical nanofibres and neutral atoms

Abstract

Optical nanofibres are increasingly being used in cold atom experiments due to their versatility and the clear advantages they have when developing all-fibred systems for quantum technologies. They provide researchers with a method of overcoming the Rayleigh range for achieving high intensities in a focussed beam over a relatively long distance, and can act as a noninvasive tool for probing cold atoms. In this review article, we will briefly introduce the theory of mode propagation in an ultrathin optical fibre and highlight some of the more significant theoretical and experimental progresses to date, including the early work on atom probing, manipulation and trapping, the study of atom-dielectric surface interactions, and the more recent observation of nanofibre-mediated nonlinear optics phenomena in atomic media. The functionality of optical nanofibres in relation to the realisation of atom-photon hybrid quantum systems is also becoming more evident as some of the earlier technical challenges are surpassed and, recently, several schemes to implement optical memories have been proposed. We also discuss some possible directions where this research field may head, in particular in relation to the use of optical nanofibres that can support higher-order modes with an associated orbital angular momentum.

13 pages, 12 figures

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Cited by in corpus (47)

• Waveguide-coupled single collective excitation of atomic arrays
• Large Bragg Reflection from One-Dimensional Chains of Trapped Atoms Near a Nanoscale Waveguide
• Generation of cold Rydberg atoms at submicron distances from an optical nanofiber
• Observation of Multimode Strong Coupling of Cold Atoms to a 30-m Long Optical Resonator
• Optical nanofiber-based cavity induced by periodic air-nanohole arrays
• Higher-order modes of vacuum-clad ultrathin optical fibers
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• Enhancement of the quadrupole interaction of an atom with guided light of an ultrathin optical fiber
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• Tailoring a nanofiber for enhanced photon emission and coupling efficiency from single quantum emitters
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• Nanofiber-segment ring resonator
• Interaction signatures and non-Gaussian photon states from a strongly driven atomic ensemble coupled to a nanophotonic waveguide
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• Spontaneous emission of a sodium Rydberg atom close to an optical nanofibre
• Polarisation control for optical nanofibres by imaging through a single lens
• Controlled creation of three-dimensional vortex structures in Bose--Einstein condensates using artificial magnetic fields
• Transfer of angular momentum of guided light to an atom with an electric quadrupole transition near an optical nanofiber
• Cold atoms in micromachined waveguides: a new platform for atom-photon interaction
• Coupling between guided modes of two parallel nanofibers
• Creating superfluid vortex rings in artificial magnetic fields
• Nanotrappy: An open-source versatile package for cold-atom trapping close to nanostructures
• Optical trap for an atom around the midpoint between two coupled identical parallel optical nanofibers
• Probing Surface-Bound Atoms with Quantum Nanophotonics
• Asymmetric comb waveguide for strong interactions between atoms and light
• Torque of guided light on an atom near an optical nanofiber
• Rubidium atom spectral lineshapes in high intensity electric fields near an optical nanofibre
• Topological photon pumping in quantum optical systems
• Optical force between two coupled identical parallel optical nanofibers
• Transmission characteristics of optical nanofibers in metastable xenon
• Direction-dependent coupling between a nanofiber-guided light field and a two-level atom with an electric quadrupole transition
• A transversely localized light in waveguide: the analytical solution and its potential applications
• Nanofibre-based trap for Rb${}_2$ molecule
• Chiral excitation of a single atom by a single photon in a guided mode of a nanofiber
• Adaptive, symmetry-informed Bayesian metrology for precise quantum technology measurements
• Measuring fluorescence into a nanofiber by observing field quadrature noise
• Excitation spectrum of a multilevel atom coupled with a dielectric nanostructure
• Repulsive Casimir-Polder potentials of low-lying excited states of a multilevel alkali-metal atom near an optical nanofiber
• Ultralow-power single-pass all-optical photon router
• Observation of oscillatory Raman gain associated with two-photon Rabi oscillations of nanofiber-coupled atoms