# Characterizing the local vectorial electric field near an atom chip using Rydberg state spectroscopy

## TL;DR

This study employs Rydberg atom spectroscopy to precisely measure and characterize all three components of local electric fields near an atom chip, demonstrating a method for electric field calibration and gradient detection.

## Contribution

The paper introduces a novel spectroscopy-based technique to fully characterize vector electric fields near an atom chip using Rydberg states, including field calibration and gradient measurement.

## Key findings

- Residual electric fields in two directions measured with high precision.
- Method successfully extracts electric field components from Rydberg state responses.
- Potential for observing Rydberg-mediated interactions on a chip.

## Abstract

We use the sensitive response to electric fields of Rydberg atoms to characterize all three vector components of the local electric field close to an atom-chip surface. We measured Stark-Zeeman maps of $S$ and $D$ Rydberg states using an elongated cloud of ultracold Rubidium atoms ($T\sim2.5$ $\mu$K) trapped magnetically $100$ $\mu$m from the chip surface. The spectroscopy of $S$ states yields a calibration for the generated local electric field at the position of the atoms. The values for different components of the field are extracted from the more complex response of $D$ states to the combined electric and magnetic fields. From the analysis we find residual fields in the two uncompensated directions of $0.0\pm0.2$ V/cm and $1.98\pm0.09$ V/cm respectively. This method also allows us to extract a value for the relevant field gradient along the long axis of the cloud. The manipulation of electric fields and the magnetic trapping are both done using on-chip wires, making this setup a promising candidate to observe Rydberg-mediated interactions on a chip.