Continuous recoil-driven lasing and cavity frequency pinning with laser-cooled atoms

Area of Science:

• Quantum optics
• Atomic physics
• Cavity quantum electrodynamics

Background:

• Laser-cooled atoms in optical cavities are key for quantum sensing and simulation.
• Investigating phenomena like self-organization and lasing is often limited by discontinuous atomic reloading.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate continuous lasing from laser-cooled atoms in a ring cavity.
• To explore the potential for robust, continuous quantum electrodynamics experiments.

Main Methods:

• Loading laser-cooled 88Sr atoms into a ring cavity.
• Utilizing atomic-momentum inversion for lasing, linked to self-organization and collective atomic recoil lasing.

Main Results:

• Achieved hours-long continuous lasing, a significant improvement over previous discontinuous methods.
• Observed reduced sensitivity of lasing frequency to cavity frequency changes due to atomic loss, indicating noise mitigation potential.

Conclusions:

• Continuous lasing from laser-cooled atoms in optical cavities is feasible.
• This work paves the way for continuous cavity quantum electrodynamics and robust super-radiant lasers.