Optimal State Choice for Rydberg Atom Microwave Sensors

Abstract

Rydberg electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) enables realization of atom-based SI-traceable microwave (MW) sensing, imaging and communication devices by exploiting the strong microwave electric dipole coupling of highly excited Rydberg states. Essential to the development of robust devices is a careful characterization of sensor performance and systematic uncertainties. In this work we present a comparison of microwave-induced EIT splitting in a cesium atomic vapor for four possible Rydberg couplings $65S_{1/2}\to 65P_{1/2}$, $66S_{1/2}\to 66P_{3/2}$, $79D_{5/2}\to 81P_{3/2}$ and $62D_{5/2}\to 60F_{7/2}$ at microwave transition frequencies around 13 GHz. Our work highlights the impact of multi-photon couplings to neighboring Rydberg states in breaking both the symmetry and linearity of the observed splitting, with excellent agreement between experimental observations and a theoretical model accounting for multi-photon couplings. We identify an optimal angular state choice for robust microwave measurements, as well as demonstrating a new regime in which microwave polarization can be measured.

References in corpus (7)

• Broadband Rydberg Atom-Based Electric-Field Probe: From Self-Calibrated Measurements to Sub-Wavelength Imaging
• Sub-Wavelength Imaging and Field Mapping via EIT and Autler-Townes Splitting In Rydberg Atoms
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• Compact sub-Hz Linewidth Laser Enabled by Self Injection Lock To a Sub-mL FP Cavity
• Microwave-optical coupling via Rydberg excitons in cuprous oxide
• Sensitivity of Rydberg-atom receiver to frequency and amplitude modulation of microwaves
• Polarization-insensitive microwave electrometry using Rydberg atoms
• An isotropic antenna based on Rydberg atoms
• Optically-biased Rydberg microwave receiver enabled by hybrid nonlinear interferometry
• Bright and dark Autler-Townes states in the atomic Rydberg multilevel spectroscopy
• Determination of Quantum Defects and Core Polarizability of Atomic Cesium via Terahertz and Radio-Frequency Spectroscopy in Thermal Vapor
• Modulation transfer protocol for Rydberg RF receivers
• Observation of effects of inter-atomic interaction on Autler-Townes splitting in cold Rydberg atoms
• Microwave Controlled Photonic Spin Hall Effect in Atomic System and Microwave Electrometry