Mechanical Action of Light on Atoms

The following sections are included:

• PREFACE

• CONTENTS

The discovery of light pressure as a physical phenomenon has a long and interesting history. Kepler and Newton conjectured that light would exert pressure on material bodies. Bartoli deduced the existence of light pressure from thermodynamic considerations. Maxwell, in 1873, calculated radiation pressure in the framework of the electromagnetic field theory he had created…

The following sections are included:

• The Hamiltonian of Atom-Field Interaction

• Light Pressure Force
  • Adiabatic States. Nonresonant Potential
  • Diabatic States. Resonant Potential
  • Atomic Density Matrix Equation with Allowance for a Recoil Effect

• The Non-Adiabaticity Operator. Landau-Zener (LZ) Transitions

• Conclusion

The following sections are included:

• The Classical Picture of Scattering

• Acceleration of Atoms by Light

• Diffraction of Atoms
  • Diffraction of a “Coherent” Atomic Beam
  • Experiment
  • Bragg Scattering
  • The Scattering of Atoms by a Quantized Electromagnetic Field

• The Interference of Atoms
  • The Interference of Atoms Scattered by a Single Standing Wave
  • The Transfer of the Spatial Coherence under the Echo Conditions
  • Pulse Scattering Regime
  • Nonlinear Atomic Interferometry
  • The Bohm–Aaronov Effect
  • The Interference of Atoms in a Gas
  • Combined Scattering Regime

• Conclusion

The following sections are included:

• Dispersion of Atoms in the Periodic Light Field
  • Travelling Wave
  • Atoms in a Standing Wave. Symmetry of the Problem
  • Dispersion Law for a Weak Field

• A Strong Field Case. The Above-Barrier Motion
  • The Scalar Particle in a Periodic Potential
  • The Influence of the Landau–Zener Transitions
  • The Bloeh Functions for an Atom in a Standing-Wave Field
  • Optical Characteristics of Atoms in a Standing-Wave Field

• The Under-Barrier Motion of Atoms in a Strong Field
  • The Bipotential Motion (Δ/2 < ε < V₀). Stong Coupling Approximation (Small Δ)
  • The Lifetime of Bound States of Atoms at Large Δ
  • The Quasiclasiical Analysis of the Sub-Barrier Motion

• Bipotential Scattering
  • Quasienergetic Functions in the Constant Velocity Approximation
  • The Scattering Problem

The following sections are included:

• Equation for the Atomic Density Matrix

• The Light Pressure Force and the Hysteresis Phenomenon
  • Light Pressure Force in the Travelling Wave
  • Light Pressure Force in the Standing Wave
  • Peculiarities of the Perturbation Theory in the Field of a Standing Wave
  • Strong Field. Quasistationary Approximation
  • Strong Field. Quasiclassical Approximation. LZ-Tramitions
  • Friction Force for Fast Atoms

• Light Pressure Force and Spectrum of Resonance Fluorescence
  • Atomic Correlation Matrix with Allowance for Recoil
  • Spectrum of Resonance Fluorescence in the Field of a Travelling Wave
  • Relationship between the Light Pressure Force and Spectrum of Resonance Fluorescence
  • Spectrum of Resonance Fluorescence in the Field of a Standing Wave

• Cooling and Velocity Bunching of Atoms in the Light Field
  • Deceleration of Atoms by the Intense Standing Wave
  • Cooling of Atoms by the Spontaneous Light Pressure Force
  • Cooling of Trapped Ions by the Light Field
  • Bunching of Atoms in the Velocity Space

• Interference Phenomena and the Effect of Rectification of the Radiation Force
  • Interference Phenomena in the Monochromatic Field
  • Interference Phenomena in a Weak Bichromatic Field
  • Bichromatic Fields of Finite Amplitude

• Conclusions

The following sections are included:

• Kinetics of Atoms in the Travelling Wave Field
  • The Fokker–Planck Kinetic Equation
  • Slow Bunching in Velocities of Atoms in the Travelling Wave Field
  • Rapid Velocity Bunching in the Pretence of a Magnetic Field
  • Influence of the Light Pressure on the Nonlinear Susceptibility of Resonance Atoms

• Kinetics of Atoms in a Weak Standing-Wave Field
  • Kinetic Equation in Linear Approximation in the Field Strength
  • Evolution of the Velocity Distribution in a Weak Standing-Wave Field
  • Viscous Confinement in a Filed of the Three Orthogonal Standing Waves
  • Nonlinear Susceptibility of Resonance Atoms in a Standing-Wave Field

• Kinetic Equation for Slow Atoms in a Standing-Wave Field
  • Derivation of the Kinetic Equation
  • Properties of the Kinetic coefficients
  • Light Pressure Force in a Laser Beam of Finite Radius

• Scattering of Atoms by a Standing Wave in the Kinetic Regime

• Cooling and Localization of Atoms in a Strong Standing Light Wave
  • Stationary Solution of the Kinetic Equation
  • Effective Temperature of the Untrapped Particles
  • One-Dimensional Lattice of Cooled Atoms and the Channelling Phenomenon
  • Three-Dimensional Lattice of Cooled Atoms
  • Lifetime of Atoms in the Light-Wave Grating
  • Viscous Confinement in a Saturating Field

• Localization of Atoms in Strong Fields
  • Motion of Atoms in the Focus of a Laser Beam
  • Localization of Atoms by Light and Magnetic Fields
  • Localization of Atoms in a Bichromatic Field

• Kinetics of Fast Atoms in a Standing Light Wave
  • Kinetics of Atoms Under Strong Hysteresis
  • Fokker–Planck Equation for Fast Atoms
  • Strong Field. Bipotential Kinetics

• Diffraction, Diffusion and Potential Scattering of Atoms in a Standing-Light Wave Field
  • Basic Equations
  • The Case of Large Detunings. Spatial Correlation of Spontaneous and Induced Transitions
  • Diffraction Scattering
  • Incoherent Scattering
  • Statistics of Scattered Photons

• Polarization Effects in the Resonance Light Pressure
  • Equation for the Density Matrix
  • Magnetization of Atoms by the Linearly Polarized Wave

• Density Effects
  • Atomic Collisions in a Light Field
  • The Interaction of Atoms in a Light Field

The following sections are included:

• APPENDIX I DIFFRACTION OF ATOMS FROM A STANDING-WAVE FIELD WITH SMOOTH TEMPORAL ENVELOPE

• APPENDIX II EFFECTS OF SPONTANEOUS RELAXATION IN THE TRANSFER OF SPATIAL COHERENCE UNDER THE ECHO CONDITIONS

• APPENDIX III GENERAL FORM OF THE DISPERSION LAW FOR ATOMS IN A STANDING-WAVE FIELD

• APPENDIX IV DISPERSION OF AN ATOM IN A STRONG STANDING-WAVE FIELD UNDER SMALL DETUNINGS FROM RESONANCE

• APPENDIX V SOLUTION OF THE BLOCH EQUATIONS NEAR THE STANDING-WAVE NODES

• REFERENCES

• SUBJECT INDEX