Charge-induced optical bistability in thermal Rydberg vapor

TL;DR

This paper explores optical bistability in thermal Rydberg vapors, attributing it to charge-induced interactions rather than dipole-dipole forces, through experiments with rubidium and cesium vapors.

Contribution

It demonstrates that charge-induced effects, linked to ionized Rydberg atoms, cause optical bistability, providing direct electric field measurements and ruling out dipole-dipole interactions.

Findings

Charge-induced interactions cause optical bistability.

Electric fields are directly measured in rubidium vapor.

Dipole-dipole interactions are ruled out as the primary mechanism.

Abstract

We investigate the phenomenon of optical bistability in a driven ensemble of Rydberg atoms. By performing two experiments with thermal vapors of rubidium and cesium, we are able to shed light onto the underlying interaction mechanisms causing such a non-linear behavior. Due to the different properties of these two atomic species, we conclude that the large polarizability of Rydberg states in combination with electric fields of spontaneously ionized Rydberg atoms is the relevant interaction mechanism. In the case of rubidium, we directly measure the electric field in a bistable situation via two-species spectroscopy. In cesium, we make use of the different sign of the polarizability for different l-states and the possibility of applying electric fields. Both these experiments allow us to rule out dipole-dipole interactions, and support our hypothesis of a charge-induced bistability.