B. B. Zelener

Collisional recombination coefficient in an ultracold plasma: Calculation by the molecular dynamics method

New results of the calculations of the distribution function and the electron diffusion coefficient in energy space are presented. We analyze all of the data obtained and calculate the temperature dependence of the recombination coefficient. This dependence coincides with the Gurevich-Pitaevsky analytical formula in the region of a weakly coupled plasma and begins to differ in the direction of a decline in the region of a strongly coupled plasma; the difference can reach several orders of magnitude.

Thermodynamic and kinetic properties of nonideal Rydberg matter

Theoretical investigations of the properties of Rydberg matter, more precisely, a nonideal ultracold plasma, which is one of the forms of this matter, are reviewed. Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics studies indicate that structures with both short- and long-range orders can be formed and that the recombination coefficient in the case of strong nonideality, can be several orders of magnitude smaller than that under ideal conditions. These and other results obtained in the past several years are discussed.

Three-particle recombination coefficient of a weakly nonideal ultracold plasma in a high magnetic field

An expression for the recombination coefficient αB in a weakly nonideal ultracold plasma in a high magnetic field has been proposed. According to this expression, αB ∼ Te−1.5B−2, where Te is the temperature of electrons and B is the strength of the magnetic field. Comparison of calculated values with experimental data including the results of the recent experiments on recombination in antihydrogen confirms the theoretical dependence.

Efficient excitation of Rydberg states in ultracold lithium-7 atoms

This work is aimed at preparing highly excited optically cooled lithium-7 atoms for producing a strongly nonideal plasma and Rydberg matter. A setup implementing a novel nondestructive technique for preparation and diagnostics of highly excited Rydberg atomic states is constructed. The operation of this setup is based on the usage of a cw high-power ultraviolet laser combined with a magneto-optical trap. The diagnostics of highly excited states is performed by the direct recording of the variations in the fluorescence of ultracold lithium-7 atoms in the magneto-optical trap.

Laser cooling of 7Li atoms in a magneto-optical trap

A setup for laser cooling and confining of 7Li atoms in a magneto-optical trap has been built. The possibility of cooling and trapping of 7Li atoms in a wide range of frequency detuning of the cooling laser has been proved experimentally. Independent information on the density and number of ultracold 7Li atoms on various ground-state sublevels, as well as on the temperature of the atoms, has been obtained with the use of a probing tunable laser. This information is important for preparing an ultracold plasma and Rydberg matter.

Thermodynamics and correlation functions of an ultracold nonideal Rydberg plasma

A pseudopotential model is suggested to describe the thermodynamics and correlation functions of an ultracold, strongly nonideal Rydberg plasma. The Monte Carlo method is used to determine the energy, pressure, and correlation functions in the ranges of temperatures T=0.1–10 K and densities n=10−2–1016 cm−3. For a weakly nonideal plasma, the results closely agree with the Debye asymptotic behavior. For a strongly nonideal plasma, many-particle clusters and a spatial order in the arrangement of plasma electrons and ions have been found to be formed.

Electron distribution function and recombination coefficient in ultracold plasma in a magnetic field

The electron distribution function and diffusion coefficient in energy space have been calculated for the first time for a weakly coupled ultracold plasma in a magnetic field in the range of magnetic fields B = 100−50000 G for various temperatures. The dependence of these characteristics on the magnetic field is analyzed and the distribution function is shown to depend on the electron energy shift in a magnetic field. The position of the “bottleneck” of the distribution function has been found to be shifted toward negative energies with increasing magnetic field. The electron velocity autocorrelators as a function of the magnetic field have been calculated; their behavior suggests that the frequency of collisions between charged particles decreases significantly with increasing magnetic field. The collisional recombination coefficient αB has been calculated in the diffusion approximation for a weakly coupled ultracold plasma in a magnetic field. An increase in magnetic field is shown to lead to a decrease in αB and this decrease can be several orders of magnitude.

Distribution function and electron state density in nonequilibrium plasma created by dye laser

Ultracold nonequilibrium plasma created by a dye laser has been studied by the molecular dynamics method. Electrons and protons in this model of nonequilibrium plasma interacted according to the Coulomb law. In the case of electron-proton interaction and a distance between particles r < a0 (Bohr radius), the interaction energy is constant, e2/a0 (e is the charge of electron). An initial proton kinetic energy is set randomly so that the average kinetic energy is 0.01–1 K. Initial full electron energy is also set randomly, but at the same time it is positive; i.e., all the electrons according to our task are located in the continuous spectrum. Average kinetic electron energy per one particle varies from 1 to 50 K. The motion equations in periodical boundary condition for this system have been solved by molecular dynamics method. We have calculated the distribution function in the region near the ionization threshold. The distribution function is being described using electron state density in the nearest neighbor approximation with activity correction.

Kinetic Processes in a Nonideal Rydberg Matter

A kinetic model is developed to describe ultracold nonideal Rydberg plasmas, which allows all stages of the generation and decay of such a plasma to be sequentially traced. The plasma kinetics is considered on the basis of available experimental data corresponding to a nonideality parameter of γ ∼ 1. The results of theoretical analysis are in good agreement with experiment. Calculations show evidence of a significantly decreased recombination rate and, hence, of the possible formation of a metastable structure in the plasma under consideration. The distribution of the number of excited atoms is determined for the plasma with Ne = Ni = 7 × 105 and Ee = 9 K. The observed behavior of the number and density of particles as functions of the time and principal quantum number is explained. It is suggested that the distribution of excited atoms for the given parameters has a maximum for the state with k = 25.

Laser diagnostics of the energy spectrum of Rydberg states of the lithium-7 atom

The spectra of excited lithium-7 atoms prepared in a magneto-optical trap are studied using a UV laser. The laser diagnostics of the energy of Rydberg atoms is developed based on measurements of the change in resonance fluorescence intensity of ultracold atoms as the exciting UV radiation frequency passes through the Rydberg transition frequency. The energies of various nS configurations are obtained in a broad range of the principal quantum number n from 38 to 165. The values of the quantum defect and ionization energy obtained in experiments and predicted theoretically are discussed.