Title | Anomalous broadening in driven dissipative Rydberg systems |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2016 |
Authors | E. A. Goldschmidt, T. Boulier, R. C. Brown, S. B. Koller, J. T. Young, A. V. Gorshkov, S. L. Rolston, and J. V. Porto |
Journal | Phys. Rev. Lett. |
Volume | 116 |
Issue | 11 |
Pagination | 113001 |
Date Published | 03/2016 |
Abstract | We observe interaction-induced broadening of the two-photon 5s-18s transition in 87Rb atoms trapped in a 3D optical lattice. The measured linewidth increases by nearly two orders of magnitude with increasing atomic density and excitation strength, with corresponding suppression of resonant scattering and enhancement of off-resonant scattering. We attribute the increased linewidth to resonant dipole-dipole interactions of 18s atoms with blackbody induced population in nearby np states. Over a range of initial atomic densities and excitation strengths, the transition width is described by a single function of the steady-state density of Rydberg atoms, and the observed resonant excitation rate corresponds to that of a two-level system with the measured, rather than natural, linewidth. The broadening mechanism observed here is likely to have negative implications for many proposals with coherently interacting Rydberg atoms. |
DOI | 10.1103/PhysRevLett.116.113001 |