Generation of coherent blue light via bichromatic pumping in cesium vapor

Abstract

Diode-pumped alkali lasers, possessing high efficiency and narrow linewidth, can provide feasible solutions for wavelength ranges difficult to reach by commercial lasers. In this study, we investigate a generation of coherent blue light (CBL) via four-wave mixing (FWM)-based up-conversion processes in cesium (Cs) vapor. A bichromatic pumping scheme with 852- and 917-nm lasers drives the Cs atoms to the 6D_5/2 excited level, followed by cascaded decay of 6D_5/2 → 7P_3/2 → 6S_1/2, producing 456-nm CBL under phase matching conditions. The fluorescence in multiple bands from blue to near- and far-infrared in the FWM process is demonstrated under different experimental conditions. To optimize the experimental parameters, we investigate the dependence of 456-nm CBL on the vapor temperature, frequency, and intensity of the two pump lasers. A maximum power of 2.94 mW is achieved with pump powers of 430 mW (for 852 nm) and 470 mW (for 917 nm). The corresponding conversion efficiency is 1.5%/W, three-fold higher than those in previous studies. Our results can contribute to fundamental research on atom−photon interactions and quantum metrology.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

four wave mixing / conversion / coherent blue beam / bichromatic pumping

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Prof. Jinze Wu from Taiyuan University of Science and Technology for the instructive and fruitful discussions. This work was supported by Innovation Program for Quantum Science and Technology (Grant No. 2021ZD0302100), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants Nos. 62020106014, 62175140, 12034012, 92165106, 12104276, and 62011530047), PCSIRT (No. IRT17R70), 111 Project (Grant No. D18001), the Educational Reform and Innovation Project of Higher education in Shanxi Province (Grant Nos. Z20220001 and Z20220013), the Shanxi 1331 KSC.

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