Photon Assisted Cold Collisions in a Rb MOT

1
Photon Assisted Cold Collisions in a Rb MOT
10/05/2005
Marc Trachy
B. D. DePaola, M. H. Shah, H. A. Camp
Now at IDA
2
Intuitive Picture (or Hot Atoms)
Atom
Atom
Step 1 Add photons
Atom
Atom
Step 2 Collide
e-
Step 3 Ionize (Penning or Associative)
Ion
Atom
Atom
Atom
Step 1.5 Decay
3
Rb Energy Levels
Atomic
Molecular
4d
L2 (1529 nm)
5p
L1 (780 nm)
5s
4
Three Basic Processes
Photo-associative ionization (PAI)
PAI2-1
PAI2-2
Photo-associo-dissociative ionization (PADI)
5
History
Photo-associative ionization

• Na trapping
• Metastable Xe
• Li

Photo-assio-dissociative ionization

• Nothing!

Conclusion This could be interesting!
Previous Work
6
RESULTS
7
Time of Flight
PAI
PADI
Note PADI width
Note PAI height
8
Rates
2 PAI Channels
1 PADI Channel
9
(No Transcript)
10
Transformation
WIDTH
11
What Next?
What Do We Know?

• More Measurements
• Dependence on laser frequency
• Better energy spectrum
• Explanations
• ID two PAI peaks
• Structure in PADI peaks
• ID curves involved
• Inter-nuclear separation
• Change with detuning?

• PADI/PAI ratio vs Intensity
• Quasi-molecule PADI
• Molecular PAI
• PADI energy distribution