High-resolution antenna near-field imaging and sub-THz measurements with
  a small atomic vapor-cell sensing element

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Abstract

Atomic sensing and measurement of millimeter-wave (mmW) and THz electric fields using quantum-optical EIT spectroscopy of Rydberg states in atomic vapors has garnered significant interest in recent years towards the development of atomic electric-field standards and sensor technologies. Here we describe recent work employing small atomic vapor cell sensing elements for near-field imaging of the radiation pattern of a K\(_u\)-band horn antenna at 13.49 GHz. We image fields at a spatial resolution of \(\lambda/10\) and measure over a 72 to 240 V/m field range using off-resonance AC-Stark shifts of a Rydberg resonance. The same atomic sensing element is used to measure sub-THz electric fields at 255 GHz, an increase in mmW-frequency by more than one order of magnitude. The sub-THz field is measured over a continuous \(\pm\)100 MHz frequency band using a near-resonant mmW atomic transition.

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Microwave electrometry with Rydberg atoms in a vapour cell using bright atomic resonances

James Shaffer, Jonathon Sedlacek, Arne Schwettmann … (2012)

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Broadband Rydberg Atom-Based Electric-Field Probe: From Self-Calibrated Measurements to Sub-Wavelength Imaging

Christopher Holloway, Georg Raithel, Nithiwadee Thaicharoen … (2014)

We discuss a fundamentally new approach for the measurement of electric (E) fields that will lead to the development of a broadband, direct SI-traceable, compact, self-calibrating E-field probe (sensor). This approach is based on the interaction of radio frequency (RF) fields with alkali atoms excited to Rydberg states. The RF field causes an energy splitting of the Rydberg states via the Autler-Townes effect and we detect the splitting via electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). In effect, alkali atoms placed in a vapor cell act like an RF-to-optical transducer, converting an RF E-field strength measurement to an optical frequency measurement. We demonstrate the broadband nature of this approach by showing that one small vapor cell can be used to measure E-field strengths over a wide range of frequencies: 1 GHz to 500 GHz. The technique is validated by comparing experimental data to both numerical simulations and far-field calculations for various frequencies. We also discuss various applications, including: a direct traceable measurement, the ability to measure both weak and strong field strengths, compact form factors of the probe, and sub-wavelength imaging and field mapping.