An experimental and theoretical guide to strongly interacting Rydberg gases

TL;DR

This paper provides a comprehensive review of experimental and theoretical methods for studying strongly interacting Rydberg gases, emphasizing dense ultracold Rubidium samples near quantum degeneracy and their interactions.

Contribution

It offers an integrated overview of tools and techniques for exciting and understanding Rydberg gases, with a focus on highly excited S-states of Rubidium and their isotropic van-der-Waals interactions.

Findings

Detailed experimental procedures for Rydberg excitation.

Theoretical models describing Rydberg interactions.

Applicability of methods to various atomic species.

Abstract

We review experimental and theoretical tools to excite, study and understand strongly interacting Rydberg gases. The focus lies on the excitation of dense ultracold atomic samples close to, or within quantum degeneracy, to high lying Rydberg states. The major part is dedicated to highly excited S-states of Rubidium, which feature an isotropic van-der-Waals potential. Nevertheless, the setup and the methods presented are also applicable to other atomic species used in the field of laser cooling and atom trapping.