Chirped-Pulse Millimeter-Wave Spectroscopy of Rydberg-Rydberg Transitions

• Main Authors: Prozument, Kirill (Contributor), Colombo, Anthony P. (Contributor), Zhou, Yan (Contributor), Park, Barratt (Contributor), Petrovic, Vladimir S. (Contributor), Coy, Stephen L. (Contributor), Field, Robert W. (Contributor)
• Other Authors: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemistry (Contributor)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: American Physical Society (APS), 2012-02-09T17:01:57Z.
• Subjects: Article
• Online Access: Get fulltext

Transitions between Rydberg states of Ca atoms, in a pulsed, supersonic atomic beam, are directly detected by chirped-pulse millimeter-wave spectroscopy. Broadband, high-resolution spectra with accurate relative intensities are recorded instantly. Free induction decay (FID) of atoms, polarized by the chirped pulse, at their Rydberg-Rydberg transition frequencies, is heterodyne detected, averaged in the time domain, and Fourier transformed into the frequency domain. Millimeter-wave transient nutations are observed, and the possibility of FID evolving to superradiance is discussed.
National Science Foundation (U.S.). (CHE-0749821)