Raman spectroscopy of a single ion coupled to a high-finesse cavity

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates a cavity-QED system with a single ion where Raman spectroscopy reveals atom-cavity interactions, motional effects, and potential for advanced quantum control.

Contribution

It introduces a novel ion-cavity system utilizing vacuum-stimulated Raman transitions with experimental validation and theoretical modeling.

Findings

Raman spectra match theoretical predictions

Residual ion motion causes motional sidebands

System enables prospects for ground-state cooling and coherent control

Abstract

We describe an ion-based cavity-QED system in which the internal dynamics of an atom is coupled to the modes of an optical cavity by vacuum-stimulated Raman transitions. We observe Raman spectra for different excitation polarizations and find quantitative agreement with theoretical simulations. Residual motion of the ion introduces motional sidebands in the Raman spectrum and leads to ion delocalization. The system offers prospects for cavity-assisted resolved-sideband ground-state cooling and coherent manipulation of ions and photons.