Accurate Determination of the Dynamical Polarizability of Dysprosium

TL;DR

This paper precisely measures the dynamical polarizability of dysprosium atoms at 1064 nm using collective oscillations in an optical trap, providing data crucial for laser trapping and testing theoretical models.

Contribution

It introduces a highly accurate experimental method for measuring dysprosium's dynamical polarizability, surpassing previous precision and enabling better theoretical validation.

Findings

Scalar polarizability: 184.4(2.4) a.u.

Tensor polarizability: 1.7(6) a.u.

Method allows meaningful tests of theoretical models.

Abstract

We report a measurement of the dynamical polarizability of dysprosium atoms in their electronic ground state at the optical wavelength of 1064 nm, which is of particular interest for laser trapping experiments. Our method is based on collective oscillations in an optical dipole trap, and reaches unprecedented accuracy and precision by comparison with an alkali atom (potassium) as a reference species. We obtain values of 184.4(2.4) a.u. and 1.7(6) a.u. for the scalar and tensor polarizability, respectively. Our experiments have reached a level that permits meaningful tests of current theo- retical descriptions and provides valuable information for future experiments utilizing the intriguing properties of heavy lanthanide atoms.