Intracavity Rydberg atom electromagnetically induced transparency using a high finesse optical cavity

TL;DR

This paper experimentally investigates cavity-assisted Rydberg atom EIT in a high-finesse optical cavity, revealing a three-peak transmission spectrum and analyzing coherence properties, with implications for quantum information and many-body physics.

Contribution

It demonstrates the realization of Rydberg EIT inside a high-finesse cavity and characterizes its spectral and coherence properties, advancing quantum optics applications.

Findings

Observation of a three-peak cavity transmission spectrum

Determination of a lower bound on coherence time (~7.26 μs)

Analysis of bright and dark polariton states and electric field effects

Abstract

We present an experimental study of cavity assisted Rydberg atom electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) using a high-finesse optical cavity ($F \sim 28000$). Rydberg atoms are excited via a two-photon transition in a ladder-type EIT configuration. A three-peak structure of the cavity transmission spectrum is observed when Rydberg EIT is generated inside the cavity. The two symmetrically spaced side peaks are caused by bright-state polaritons, while the central peak corresponds to a dark-state polariton. Anti-crossing phenomenon and the effects of mirror adsorbate electric fields are studied under different experimental conditions. We determine a lower bound on the coherence time for the system of $7.26 \pm 0.06 \,\mu$s, most likely limited by laser dephasing. The cavity-Rydberg EIT system can be useful for single photon generation using the Rydberg blockade effect, studying many-body physics, and generating novel quantum states amongst many other applications.