Laser pulse amplification through a laser-cooled active plasma

Abstract

Recent advances in experimental laser cooling have shown the possibility of stopping an atomic beam using the light pressure force of a counter-propagating laser wave. As an application to laser cooling, it is proposed to build a single frequency cesium laser that has a narrow linewidth. Laser cooling techniques are used to cool an atomic beam of cesium to an average velocity of 5 m/s, corresponding to a temperature of 0.2°K. Expressions of the basic forces that a laser wave exerts on atoms are derived according to a semi-classical approach. The experimental problems and methods of avoiding these problems are treated in detail. A computer Monte-Carlo simulation is used to discuss the feasibility of building the proposed laser. This simulation was done for an ensemble of 10,000 atoms of cesium, and it included the effects of the gravitational force and the related experimental variables. The possibility of building single frequency lasers that use a cooled medium of noble gases, and many other applications of laser cooling are briefly discussed at the end of this work.