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arXiv · 1905.02783

Measurement of the atom-surface van der Waals interaction by transmission spectroscopy in a wedged nano-cell

T. Peyrot·N. Šibalić·Y. R. P. Sortais·A. Browaeys·A. Sargsyan·D. Sarkisyan·I. G. Hughes·C. S. Adams
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Abstract

We demonstrate a method for measuring atom-surface interactions using transmission spectroscopy of thermal vapors confined in a wedged nano-cell. The wedged shape of the cell allows complementary measurements of both the bulk atomic vapor and atoms close to surfaces experiencing strong van der Waals atom-surface interaction. These are used to tightly constrain the dipole-dipole collisional parameters of a theoretical model for transmission spectra that accounts for atom-surface interactions, cavity effects, collisions with the surface of the cell and atomic motion. We illustrate this method on a cesium vapor in a sapphire cell, find $C_3=1.3\pm0.1$\,kHz.$μ$m$^3$ and demonstrate that even the weakest of the van der Waals atom-surface interaction coefficients - for ground-state alkali atom transitions - can be determined with a very good precision. This result paves the way towards a precise quantitative characterization of atom-surface interactions in a wide range of atom-based nano-devices.

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T. Peyrot, N. Šibalić, Y. R. P. Sortais, A. Browaeys, A. Sargsyan, D. Sarkisyan, I. G. Hughes, C. S. Adams. 2019-05-14. Measurement of the atom-surface van der Waals interaction by transmission spectroscopy in a wedged nano-cell. https://doi.org/10.1103/physreva.100.022503

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