Observation of Rydberg Blockade Induced by a Single Ion

TL;DR

This paper reports the direct observation of Rydberg excitation blockade caused by a single ion in an ultracold atom system, demonstrating long-range interactions and potential applications in quantum sensing and entanglement.

Contribution

It introduces a hybrid ion-atom system with controlled ion motion, enabling the observation of ion-induced Rydberg blockade over tens of micrometers.

Findings

Ion-induced Rydberg blockade observed over tens of micrometers

Controlled ion motion allows analysis across different quantum states

Potential for high-sensitivity electric field sensing

Abstract

We study the long-range interaction of a single ion with a highly excited ultracold Rydberg atom and report on the direct observation of ion-induced Rydberg excitation blockade mediated over tens of micrometer distances. Our hybrid ion-atom system is directly produced from an ultracold atomic ensemble via near-threshold photo-ionization of a single Rydberg excitation, employing a two-photon scheme which is specifically suited for generating a very low-energy ion. The ion's motion is precisely controlled by small electric fields, which allows us to analyze the blockade mechanism for a range of principal quantum numbers. Finally, we explore the capability of the ion as a high-sensitivity single-atom-based electric field sensor. The observed ion - Rydberg-atom interaction is of current interest for entanglement generation or studies of ultracold chemistry in hybrid ion-atom systems.