Abstract
Wechoes in a sample of 85Rb atoms confined in a magneto-optical trap. The trapped atoms are excited with two sets of simultaneous σ+ − σ− orlin-perp-lin laser pulses separated by time T. These pulses are applied several milliseconds after turning off the trapping laser and magnetic field gradient. The pulses have wave vectors k1 and k2 at an angle 6 and are close to resonance with the 5S1/3 F = 3 − 5P3/2 F = 4’ transition. In the case of σ+ − σ− excitation, the first pulse creates a spatially modulated coherence grating involving magnetic sublevels of the ground state separated by Δm = 2. The grating washes out as a result of the velocity distribution of the atoms and may be rephased by the second pulse at time t = 2T, Both the dephasing (free induction decay or FID) and rephasing (magnetic grating echo or MGE) are detected by applying a traveling wave pulse along k2 and observing the coherent scattering along k1 with use of a heterodyne technique (Fig. 1). We have used the FID and the MGE to measure the velocity distribution of cold atoms.
© 1997 Optical Society of America
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