3,336 research outputs found
Semi-analytical model for nonlinear light propagation in strongly interacting Rydberg gases
Rate equation models are extensively used to describe the many-body states of
laser driven atomic gases. We show that the properties of the rate equation
model used to describe nonlinear optical effects arising in interacting Rydberg
gases can be understood by considering the excitation of individual
super-atoms. From this we deduce a simple semi-analytic model that accurately
describes the Rydberg density and optical susceptibility for different
dimensionalities. We identify the previously reported universal dependence of
the susceptibility on the Rydberg excited fraction as an intrinsic property of
the rate equation model that is rooted in one-body properties. Benchmarking
against exact master equation calculations, we identify regimes in which the
semi-analytic model is particularly reliable. The performance of the model
improves in the presence of dephasing which destroys higher order atomic
coherences.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure
An optical diode made from a `flying' photonic crystal
Optical diodes controlling the flow of light are of principal significance
for optical information processing 1. They transmit light from an input to an
output, but not in reverse direction. This breaking of time reversal symmetry
is typically achieved via non-linear 2,3 or magnetic effects 4, which imposes
limits to all-optical control 5-7, on-chip integration 7-11, or single-photon
operation 12. Here, we propose an optical diode which requires neither magnetic
fields nor strong input fields. It is based on a flying photonic crystal. Due
to the Doppler effect, the crystal has a band gap with frequency depending on
the light propagation direction relative to the crystal motion.
Counter-intuitively, our setup does not involve the movement of any material
parts. Rather, the flying photonic crystal is realized by optically inducing a
spatially periodic but moving modulation of the optical properties of a
near-resonant medium. The flying crystal not only opens perspectives for
optical diodes operating at low light levels or integrated in small solid state
devices, but also enables novel photonic devices such as optically tunable
mirrors and cavities.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures, presented in PQE 201
Dipole-dipole interaction between orthogonal dipole moments in time-dependent geometries
In two nearby atoms, the dipole-dipole interaction can couple transitions
with orthogonal dipole moments. This orthogonal coupling accounts for a number
of interesting effects, but strongly depends on the geometry of the setup.
Here, we discuss several setups of interest where the geometry is not fixed,
such as particles in a trap or gases, by averaging over different sets of
geometries. Two averaging methods are compared. In the first method, it is
assumed that the internal electronic evolution is much faster than the change
of geometry, whereas in the second, it is vice versa. We find that the
orthogonal coupling typically survives even extensive averaging over different
geometries, albeit with qualitatively different results for the two averaging
methods. Typically, one- and two-dimensional averaging ranges modelling, e.g.,
low-dimensional gases, turn out to be the most promising model systems.Comment: 11 pages, 14 figure
Photon scattering from strongly driven atomic ensembles
The second order correlation function for light emitted from a strongly and
near-resonantly driven dilute cloud of atoms is discussed. Because of the
strong driving, the fluorescence spectrum separates into distinct peaks, for
which the spectral properties can be defined individually. It is shown that the
second-order correlations for various combinations of photons from different
spectral lines exhibit bunching together with super- or sub-Poissonian photon
statistics, tunable by the choice of the detector positions. Additionally, a
Cauchy-Schwarz inequality is violated for photons emitted from particular
spectral bands. The emitted light intensity is proportional to the square of
the number of particles, and thus can potentially be intense. Three different
averaging procedures to model ensemble disorder are compared.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure
Superconductivity in Pseudo-Binary Silicide SrNixSi2-x with AlB2-Type Structure
We demonstrate the emergence of superconductivity in pseudo-binary silicide
SrNixSi2-x. The compound exhibits a structural phase transition from the cubic
SrSi2-type structure (P4132) to the hexagonal AlB2-type structure (P6/mmm) upon
substituting Ni for Si at approximately x = 0.1. The hexagonal structure is
stabilized in the range of 0.1 < x < 0.7. The superconducting phase appears in
the vicinity of the structural phase boundary. Ni acts as a nonmagnetic dopant,
as confirmed by the Pauli paramagnetic behavior.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure
Residual Soil Nutrient Levels After Applying Broiler Litter for Two Years With and Without Nitrogen and Potassium Fertilizer or Clover
Last updated: 6/15/201
Residual Soil Nutrient Levels After Applying Four Rates of Broiler Litter for Two Years
Last updated: 6/15/201
Full counting statistics of laser excited Rydberg aggregates in a one-dimensional geometry
We experimentally study the full counting statistics of few-body Rydberg
aggregates excited from a quasi-one-dimensional Rydberg gas. We measure
asymmetric excitation spectra and increased second and third order statistical
moments of the Rydberg number distribution, from which we determine the average
aggregate size. Direct comparisons with numerical simulations reveal the
presence of liquid-like spatial correlations, and indicate sequential growth of
the aggregates around an initial grain. These findings demonstrate the
importance of dissipative effects in strongly correlated Rydberg gases and
introduce a way to study spatio-temporal correlations in strongly-interacting
many-body quantum systems without imaging.Comment: 6 pages plus supplemen
A Problematic Set of Two-Loop Self-Energy Corrections
We investigate a specific set of two-loop self-energy corrections involving
squared decay rates and point out that their interpretation is highly
problematic. The corrections cannot be interpreted as radiative energy shifts
in the usual sense. Some of the problematic corrections find a natural
interpretation as radiative nonresonant corrections to the natural line shape.
They cannot uniquely be associated with one and only one atomic level. While
the problematic corrections are rather tiny when expressed in units of
frequency (a few Hertz for hydrogenic P levels) and do not affect the
reliability of quantum electrodynamics at the current level of experimental
accuracy, they may be of importance for future experiments. The problems are
connected with the limitations of the so-called asymptotic-state approximation
which means that atomic in- and out-states in the S-matrix are assumed to have
an infinite lifetime.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figures (New J. Phys., in press, submitted 28th May
Crop cultural and chemical methods to control grey mould on grapes
The efficiency of crop cultural (leaf removal) as well as of chemical methods (plant growth regulator, botryticide) to control grey mould caused by Botrytis cinerea was investigated in two seasons (2008 and 2009) on the varieties 'Pinot blanc' and 'Pinot gris' in the Moselle valley (Luxembourg). The application of the plant growth regulator Regalis® (a.i. prohexadione-Ca) led to a considerably more flexible cluster structure and a slight decrease of grey mould disease severity. The reduction of bunch rot infestation was of the same level than obtained by a single application of a botryticide (a.i. fenhexamid) before berries touching. Leaf removal reduced the cluster density slightly and proved to be more efficient against B. cinerea than the chemical treatments (reduction of grey mould disease severity of 57 % on average). Thus, leaf removal in the cluster-zone shortly after bloom can be recommended as an important tool in integrated as well as in organic bunch rot protection strategies. The best loosening effect on the cluster structure as well as the best B. cinerea reduction efficiency (75 % on average) was achieved when combining leaf removal and Regalis® application. The combination of leaf removal and botryticide application showed comparable results. Simulation of the B. cinerea epidemiology demonstrated that all treatments tested might allow for a longer maturation time due to lower infestation. The longest potential harvest delay until reaching an assumed threshold of 5 % disease severity was achieved by combining leaf removal and application of Regalis® or a botryticide (on average 11.6 or 9.9 days, respectively). The here presented strategies can thus be recommended to maximize wine quality in two ways – through a reduction of fungal contamination and/or an improvement of grape maturity.
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