Electric field measurements of Rydberg atomic frequency comb based on pulsed laser excitation

TL;DR

This paper introduces a pulsed laser-based frequency comb technique for Rydberg atoms, significantly improving electric field measurement sensitivity across a broad frequency range, with potential applications in microwave sensing.

Contribution

It presents a novel pulsed laser frequency comb method for Rydberg atom-based electric field sensing, enhancing sensitivity and broad-spectrum detection capabilities.

Findings

Achieved electric field sensitivity of 2.9 μV/cm/Hz(1/2).

Demonstrated effective detection in 20 kHz to 96 MHz range.

Validated high sensitivity at 66 MHz and 88 MHz broadcast frequencies.

Abstract

We present an innovative frequency comb methodology utilizing pulsed lasers for Rydberg atoms and implement it for electric field measurement. It achieves the Rydberg state population of multi-velocity group atoms through the two-photon resonant excitation of a 509 nm pulsed laser and an 852 nm continuous laser. The frequency comb approach markedly elevates the population of Rydberg atoms and augments the atomic density for sensing, thereby enhancing measurement sensitivity. Our investigations generated high-sensitivity measurements of electric fields across a broad spectrum from 20 kHz to 96 MHz, with a minimum measured electric field sensitivity of 2.9uV/cm/Hz(1/2). Additionally, we have exhibited a high degree of measurement sensitivity in the 66 MHz and 88 MHz broadcast communication frequencies. This research enhances the effective detection of microwave signals over a broad spectrum of frequency bands utilizing Rydberg atoms and introduces an innovative technical methodology for microwave metrology grounded in Rydberg atoms.