No Arabic abstract
Magneto-optically trapped atoms enable the determination of lifetimes of metastable states and higher lying excited states like the $rm{5d^{2}~^{3}F_{2}}$ state in barium. The state is efficiently populated by driving strong transitions from metastable states within the cooling cycle of the barium MOT. The lifetime is inferred from the increase of MOT fluorescence after the transfer of up to $30,%$ of the trapped atoms to this state. The radiative decay of the $rm{5d^{2}~^{3}F_{2}}$ state cascades to the cooling cycle of the MOT with a probability of $96.0(7),%$ corresponding to a trap loss of $4.0(7),%$ and its lifetime is determined to $rm{160(10)~mu s}$. This is in good agreement with the theoretically calculated lifetime of $rm{190~mu s}$ [J. Phys. B, {bf 40}, 227 (2007)]. The determined loss of $4.0(7),%$ from the cooling cycle is compared with the theoretically calculated branching ratios. This measurement extends the efficacy of trapped atoms to measure lifetimes of higher, long-lived states and validate the atomic structure calculations of heavy multi-electron systems.
The lifetime of the metastable 5d$^2$D$_{5/2}$ state has been measured for a single trapped Ba$^+$ ion in a Paul trap in Ultra High Vacuum (UHV) in the 10$^{-10}$ mbar pressure range. A total of 5046 individual periods when the ion was shelved in this state have been recorded. A preliminary value $tau_{D_{5/2}} = 26.4(1.7)$~s is obtained through extrapolation to zero residual gas pressure.
A data acquisition system is described that is designed to stabilize cooling and probe rates to maximize detection sensitivity and minimize possible systematic errors due to correlations between drifting experimental conditions and varying drive parameters. Experimental parameters that affect the Yb171 5D3/2 hyperfine state preparation and detection efficiency are characterized and optimized. A set of wait times for optimal sampling of the D3/2(F=2) lifetime is chosen and used to measure that lifetime with high statistical sensitivity. A systematic variation in this lifetime seems to be apparent. The source of the variation was not identified, but ion number and cooling rate appear to be ruled out. A net determination is made of tau=61.8ms+-(0.6)_stat+-(6.4)_sys which is significantly longer than other measurements of the same quantity. An alternate shelving scheme is proposed that would provide S-D state discrimination for Yb even isotopes as well as improved sensitivity for D state hyperfine discrimination in odd isotopes.
Time resolved detection of laser induced fluorescence from pulsed excitation of electronic states in barium monofluoride (BaF) molecules has been performed in order to determine the lifetimes of the $A^2Pi_{1/2}$ and $A^2Pi_{3/2}$ states. The method permits control over experimental parameters such that systematic biases in the interpretation of the data can be controlled to below $10^{-3}$ relative accuracy. The statistically limited values for the lifetimes of the $A^2Pi_{1/2}( u=0)$ and $A^2Pi_{3/2}( u=0)$ states are 57.1(3) ns and 47.9(7)~ns, respectively. The ratio of these values is in good agreement with scaling for the different excitation energies. The investigated molecular states are of relevance for an experimental search for a permanent electric dipole moment (EDM) of the electron in BaF.
Laser spectroscopy of short-lived radium isotopes in a linear Paul trap has been performed. The isotope shifts of the $6d,^2$D$_{3/2},$ - $7p,^2$P$_{1/2},$ transition in $^{209-214}$Ra$^+$ were measured, which are sensitive to the short range part of the atomic wavefunctions. The results are essential experimental input for improving the precision of atomic structure calculation. This is indispensable for parity violation in Ra$^+$ aiming at the determination of the weak mixing angle.
We measure the lifetime of the cesium $5^2D_{5/2}$ state using a time-resolved single-photon-counting method. We excite atoms in a hot vapor cell via an electric quadrupole transition at a wavelength of $685,mathrm{nm}$ and record the fluorescence of a cascade decay at a wavelength of $852,mathrm{nm}$. We extract a lifetime of $1353(5),mathrm{ns}$ for the $5^2D_{5/2}$ state, in agreement with a recent theoretical prediction. In particular, the observed lifetime is consistent with the literature values of the polarizabilities of the cesium $6P$ states. Our measurement contributes to resolving a long-standing disagreement between a number of experimental and theoretical results.