Related papers: Observation of Optomechanical Strain in a Cold Ato…
In this paper, we measure the spectrum of light scattered by a cold atomic cloud driven by a strong laser beam. The experimental technique is based on heterodyne spectroscopy coupled to single-photon detectors and intensity correlations. At…
We present a semi-classical theory for light deflection by a coherent $\Lambda$-type three-level atomic medium in an inhomogeneous magnetic field or an inhomogeneous control laser. When the atomic energy levels (or the Rabi coupling by the…
We observe the buildup of a frequency-shifted reverse light field in a unidirectionally pumped high-$Q$ optical ring cavity serving as a dipole trap for cold atoms. This effect is enhanced and a steady state is reached, if via an optical…
We demonstrate that a bichromatic standing-wave laser field can exert a significantly larger force on a molecule than ordinary radiation pressure. Our experiment measures the deflection of a pulsed supersonic beam of CaF molecules by a…
We study the dynamics of atoms in optical traps when exposed to laser cooling light that induces light-assisted collisions. We experimentally prepare individual atom pairs and observe their evolution. Due to the simplicity of the system…
We theoretically study the propagation of light through a cold atomic medium, where the effects of motion, laser intensity, atomic density, and polarization can all modify the properties of the scattered light. We present two different…
Correlated phases of matter provide long-term stability for systems as diverse as solids, magnets, and potential exotic quantum materials. Mechanical systems, such as relays and buckling transition spring switches can yield similar…
We study the time-dependent response of a cold atom cloud illuminated by a laser beam immediately after the light is switched on experimentally and theoretically. We show that cooperative effects, which have been previously investigated in…
Atoms can scatter light and they can also amplify it by stimulated emission. From this simple starting point, we examine the possibility of realizing a random laser in a cloud of laser-cooled atoms. The answer is not obvious as both…
By using the coherent backscattering interference effect, we investigate experimentally and theoretically how coherent transport of light inside a cold atomic vapour is affected by the residual motion of atomic scatterers. As the…
We consider the cold bosonic ensemble trapped by a helical interference pattern in the optical \textit{loop} scheme. This rotating helical potential is produced by the two slightly detuned counter propagating Laguerre-Gaussian laser beams…
The interplay between the superradiant emission of a cloud of cold two-level atoms and the radiation pressure force is discussed. Using a microscopic model of coupled atomic dipoles driven by an external laser, the radiation field and the…
Optical dipole traps and atom chips are two very powerful tools for the quantum manipulation of neutral atoms. We demonstrate that both methods can be combined by creating an optical lattice potential on an atom chip. A red-detuned laser…
The strong evanescent field around ultra-thin unclad optical fibers bears a high potential for detecting, trapping, and manipulating cold atoms. Introducing such a fiber into a cold atom cloud, we investigate the interaction of a small…
The focusing of atoms interacting with both far-detuned and resonant standing wave fields in the thin lens regime is considered. The thin lens approximation is discussed quantitatively from a quantum perspective. Exact quantum expressions…
The coherence properties of a gas of bosonic atoms above the BEC transition temperature were studied. Bragg diffraction was used to create two spatially separated wave packets, which interfere during expansion. Given sufficient expansion…
We show theoretically that thermomechanical effects in dye-doped nematic liquid crystals when illuminated by laser beams, can become important and lead to molecular reorientation at intensities substantially lower than that needed for…
The optical properties of randomly positioned, resonant scatterers is a fundamentally difficult problem to address across a wide range of densities and geometries. We investigate it experimentally using a dense cloud of rubidium atoms…
The mechanical action of light on atoms is nowadays a tool used ubiquitously in cold atom physics. In the semiclassical regime where the atomic motion is treated classically, the computation of the mean force acting on a two-level atom…
There is a broad interest in enhancing the strength of light-atom interactions to the point where injecting a single photon induces a nonlinear material response. Here, we show theoretically that sub-Doppler-cooled, two-level atoms that are…