Thierry Botter

Non-classical light generated by quantum-noise-driven cavity optomechanics.

Optomechanical systems, in which light drives and is affected by the motion of a massive object, will comprise a new framework for nonlinear quantum optics, with applications ranging from the storage and transduction of quantum information to enhanced detection sensitivity in gravitational wave detectors. However, quantum optical effects in optomechanical systems have remained obscure, because their detection requires the object’s motion to be dominated by vacuum fluctuations in the optical radiation pressure; so far, direct observations have been stymied by technical and thermal noise. Here we report an implementation of cavity optomechanics using ultracold atoms in which the collective atomic motion is dominantly driven by quantum fluctuations in radiation pressure. The back-action of this motion onto the cavity light field produces ponderomotive squeezing. We detect this quantum phenomenon by measuring sub-shot-noise optical squeezing. Furthermore, the system acts as a low-power, high-gain, nonlinear parametric amplifier for optical fluctuations, demonstrating a gain of 20 dB with a pump corresponding to an average of only seven intracavity photons. These findings may pave the way for low-power quantum optical devices, surpassing quantum limits on position and force sensing, and the control and measurement of motion in quantum gases.

Tunable cavity optomechanics with ultracold atoms.

We present an atom-chip-based realization of quantum cavity optomechanics with cold atoms localized within a Fabry-Perot cavity. Effective subwavelength positioning of the atomic ensemble allows for tuning the linear and quadratic optomechanical coupling parameters, varying the sensitivity to the displacement and strain of a compressible gaseous medium. We observe effects of such tuning on cavity optical nonlinearity and optomechanical frequency shifts, providing their first characterization in the quadratic-coupling regime.

Optical detection of the quantization of collective atomic motion.

We directly measure the quantized collective motion of a gas of thousands of ultracold atoms, coupled to light in a high-finesse optical cavity. We detect strong asymmetries, as high as 3:1, in the intensity of light scattered into low- and high-energy motional sidebands. Owing to high cavity-atom cooperativity, the optical output of the cavity contains a spectroscopic record of the energy exchanged between light and motion, directly quantifying the heat deposited by a quantum position measurements backaction. Such backaction selectively causes the phonon occupation of the observed collective modes to increase with the measurement rate. These results, in addition to providing a method for calibrating the motion of low-occupation mechanical systems, offer new possibilities for investigating collective modes of degenerate gases and for diagnosing optomechanical measurement backaction.

Optically measuring force near the standard quantum limit

Measuring tiny forces with atomic clouds For projects such as detecting gravity waves, physicists need to measure tiny forces precisely. Schreppler et al. developed an extremely sensitive method for force measurement. They applied a known force on a cloud of ultracold rubidium atoms in an optical cavity. The force caused the atoms to oscillate, and the researchers used optical measurements to monitor the motion. Under optimal conditions, the authors could measure forces with a level of sensitivity only four times worse than the fundamental limit imposed by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. Science, this issue p. 1486 A very sensitive force-measuring technique uses ultracold rubidium atoms in an optical cavity as a mechanical oscillator. The Heisenberg uncertainty principle sets a lower bound on the noise in a force measurement based on continuously detecting a mechanical oscillator’s position. This bound, the standard quantum limit, can be reached when the oscillator subjected to the force is unperturbed by its environment and when measurement imprecision from photon shot noise is balanced against disturbance from measurement back-action. We applied an external force to the center-of-mass motion of an ultracold atom cloud in a high-finesse optical cavity and measured the resulting motion optically. When the driving force is resonant with the cloud’s oscillation frequency, we achieve a sensitivity that is a factor of 4 above the standard quantum limit and consistent with theoretical predictions given the atoms’ residual thermal disturbance and the photodetection quantum efficiency.

Linear Amplifier Model for Optomechanical Systems

We model optomechanical systems as linear optical amplifiers. This provides a unified treatment of diverse optomechanical phenomena. We emphasize, in particular, the relationship between ponderomotive squeezing and optomechanically induced transparency, two foci of current research. We characterize the amplifier response to quantum and deliberately applied fluctuations, both optical and mechanical. Further, we apply these results to establish quantum limits on external force sensing both on and off cavity resonance. We find that the maximum sensitivity attained on resonance constitutes an absolute upper limit, not surpassed when detuning off cavity resonance. The theory can be extended to a two-sided cavity with losses and limited detection efficiency.

Cavity-aided magnetic resonance microscopy of atomic transport in optical lattices

The power of magnetic resonance imaging for investigating physical and biological systems is well established. Here, it is shown how the sensitivity of cavity atom optics, together with the control provided by atom chips, enables the implementation of a magnetic-resonance-imaging technique that provides a minimally destructive, state-sensitive detection modality for atoms in ultracold gases.

QUANTUM MICRO-MECHANICS WITH ULTRACOLD ATOMS

In many experiments isolated atoms and ions have been inserted into high-finesse optical resonators for the study of fundamental quantum optics and quantum information. Here, we introduce another application of such a system, as the realization of cavity optomechanics where the collective motion of an atomic ensemble serves the role of a moveable optical element in an optical resonator. Compared with other optomechanical systems, such as those incorporating nanofabricated cantilevers or the large cavity mirrors of gravitational observatories, our cold-atom realization offers direct access to the quantum regime. We describe experimental investigations of optomechanical effects, such as the bistability of collective atomic motion and the first quantification of measurement backaction for a macroscopic object, and discuss future directions for this nascent field.