S. J. Seltzer

Unshielded three-axis vector operation of a spin-exchange-relaxation-free atomic magnetometer

We describe a vector alkali–metal magnetometer that simultaneously and independently measures all three components of the magnetic field. Using a feedback system, the total field at the location of the magnetometer is kept near zero, suppressing the broadening due to spin-exchange collisions. The resonance linewidth and signal strength of the magnetometer compare favorably with two different scalar operation modes in which spin-exchange relaxation is only partially suppressed. Magnetic field sensitivity on the order of 1pT∕Hz is demonstrated in a laboratory environment without magnetic shields.

Subfemtotesla radio-frequency atomic magnetometer for detection of nuclear quadrupole resonance

A radio-frequency tunable atomic magnetometer is developed for detection of nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) from room temperature solids. It has a field sensitivity 0.24fT∕Hz1∕2 at the 423kHz N14 NQR frequency of ammonium nitrate. A potential application of the magnetometer is detection of nitrogen-containing explosives which is difficult with conventional tuned copper coils due to a poor signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) below a few megahertz. The NQR signal from 22g of powdered ammonium nitrate located 2cm away from the sensor is detected with a SNR of 9 in a 4.4-s-long multiple echo sequence, which represents an estimated order-of-magnitude improvement in sensitivity over the pickup coil detection.

High-temperature alkali vapor cells with antirelaxation surface coatings

Antirelaxation surface coatings allow long spin relaxation times in alkali-metal cells without buffer gas, enabling faster diffusion of the alkali atoms throughout the cell and giving larger signals due to narrower optical linewidths. Effective coatings were previously unavailable for operation at temperatures above 80 C. We demonstrate that octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) can allow potassium or rubidium atoms to experience hundreds of collisions with the cell surface before depolarizing, and that an OTS coating remains effective up to about 170 C for both potassium and rubidium. We consider the experimental concerns of operating without buffer gas and with minimal quenching gas at high vapor density, studying the stricter need for effective quenching of excited atoms and deriving the optical rotation signal shape for atoms with resolved hyperfine structure in the spin-temperature regime. As an example of a high-temperature application of antirelaxation coated alkali vapor cells, we operate a spin-exchange relaxation-free atomic magnetometer with sensitivity of 6 fT/sqrt(Hz) and magnetic linewidth as narrow as 2 Hz.

Testing the effect of surface coatings on alkali atom polarization lifetimes

The evaluation of different surface coatings used in alkali metal atomic magnetometers is necessary for the improvement of sensitivity of these devices. A method to measure the polarization lifetime of alkali atoms in the region between substrates with different coatings was developed to determine the effectiveness of the coating at preserving alkali spin polarization as well as chemical compatibility and high-temperature stability. Multiple coatings can be compared under identical experimental conditions, using an experimental geometry that allows surface characterization before and after evaluation of the polarization lifetime. Multilayered, cross-linked octadecyltrichlorosilane films, alkyltrichlorosilane monolayers, and octadecylphosphonic acid monolayers were evaluated using this approach.

Synchronous optical pumping of quantum revival beats for atomic magnetometry

We observe quantum beats with periodic revivals due to nonlinear spacing of Zeeman levels in the ground state of potassium atoms, and demonstrate their synchronous optical pumping by double modulation of the pumping light at the Larmor frequency and the revival frequency. We show that synchronous pumping increases the degree of spin polarization by a factor of 4. As a practical example, we explore the application of this double-modulation technique to atomic magnetometers operating in the geomagnetic field range, and find that it can increase the sensitivity and reduce magnetic-field-orientation-dependent measurement errors endemic to alkali-metal magnetometers.

Light-induced changes in an alkali metal atomic vapor cell coating studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

The light-induced desorption of Rb atoms from a paraffin coating is studied with depth-profiling X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) using tunable synchrotron radiation. Following Rb exposure, shifts of the C1s signal to higher binding energies, as well as the appearance of lower binding energy components in the O1s region, were observed. These effects were diminished after irradiation with desorbing light. Additionally, following desorbing-light irradiation, changes in the depth-dependent concentration of carbon were observed. These observations offer an insight into the microscopic changes that occur during light-induced atomic desorption and demonstrate the utility of XPS in understanding atom-coating interactions.