Polarization-insensitive microwave electrometry using Rydberg atoms

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that Rydberg atom-based microwave electrometry using Autler-Townes splitting is insensitive to microwave polarization orientation, enabling robust polarization-insensitive measurements.

Contribution

It introduces a method for polarization-insensitive microwave electrometry using Rydberg atoms, contrasting with previous polarization-dependent approaches.

Findings

Autler-Townes splitting remains invariant under microwave polarization rotation.

Laser transmission reveals a stable two-peak pattern for Rydberg transitions.

Rydberg transitions are ideal for polarization-insensitive electrometry.

Abstract

We investigate the Autler-Townes splitting for Rydberg atoms dressed with linearly polarized microwave radiation, resonant with generic $S_{1/2}\leftrightarrow{P}_{1/2}$ and $S_{1/2}\leftrightarrow{P}_{3/2}$ transitions. The splitting is probed using laser light via electromagnetically-induced transparency measurements, where the transmission of probe laser light reveals a two-peak pattern. In particular, this pattern is invariant under rotation of the microwave field polarization. In consequence, we establish $S \leftrightarrow P$ Rydberg transitions as ideally suited for polarization-insensitive electrometry, contrary to recent findings [A. Chopinaud and J.D. Pritchard, Phys. Rev. Appl. $\mathbf{16}$, 024008 (2021)].