Observation of the red-blue detuning asymmetry in matter-wave superradiance

Published

November 23, 2010

Author(s)

Lu Deng, Edward W. Hagley, Qiang Cao, Xiaorui Wang, Xinyu Luo, Ruquan Wang, Fan Yang, Xiaoji Zhou, Xuzong Chen, M. G. Payne, Mingsheng Zhan

Abstract

We show the first experimental observations of matter-wave superradiance using blue-detuned light, and demonstrate a pump-laser detuning asymmetry in the collective atomic recoil motion. In contrast to all previous theoretical treatments, which predict that the process should be symmetric with respect to the sign of the pump laser detuning, we find that for sufficiently high atomic densities the symmetry is broken. However, in the limit of a dilute atomic gas the symmetry is restored. With high atomic densities and a red-detuned pump laser, the usual distinctive multi-order matterwave scattering pattern is clearly visible, whereas with blue-detuned light the collective atom recoil motion is strongly suppressed.

Citation

Physical Review Letters

Volume

105

Issue

22

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.105.220404

Keywords

Bose-Einstein condensation, detuning assymetry, matter-waves, superradiance

Citation

Deng, L. , Hagley, E. , Cao, Q. , Wang, X. , Luo, X. , Wang, R. , Yang, F. , Zhou, X. , Chen, X. , , M. and Zhan, M. (2010), Observation of the red-blue detuning asymmetry in matter-wave superradiance, Physical Review Letters, [online], https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.105.220404 (Accessed October 10, 2025)