Effect of Buffer Gas Influence on Magnetically-Induced Transitions in 87Rb Atoms, D2 Line

Abstract

Unusual magnetically-induced (MI) transitions F_g =1 → F_e = 3 of the ⁸⁷Rb atoms, D₂ lines, forbidden in the absence of magnetic field but becoming significant in magnetic fields >500 G have been studied. The effect of the buffer gas of neon on MI transitions was studied using the process of resonant absorption of laser radiation in a nanocell (NC) with Rb atomic vapors with an NC thickness L = 390 nm and a buffer gas of neon with the pressures of 6 and 20 Torr. The use of NC enables to achieve high spectral resolution and selectively study the MI transitions. It was found that the addition of neon to the cell results in a decrease in the amplitude of the MI transition and its spectral broadening (for some optical processes, the addition of a buffer gas results in an improvement of the parameters). The optimal power of a CW laser for the effective formation of the MI transitions was found to be equal to 10 μW.