Vacuum Rabi oscillation

A vacuum Rabi oscillation is a damped oscillation of an initially excited atom coupled to an electromagnetic resonator or cavity in which the atom alternately emits photon(s) into a single-mode electromagnetic cavity and reabsorbs them. The atom interacts with a single-mode field confined to a limited volume V in an optical cavity.^{[1] [2][3]} Spontaneous emission results as a consequence of coupling between the atom and the vacuum fluctuations of the cavity field. The vacuum Rabi frequency is given by

$\omega = \frac {2}{ \hbar } \mathcal{E} f( \mathbf{R} )\langle \mathbf{p \cdot \epsilon} \rangle \ .$

where R is the location of the atom, f ( R ) = exp ( i k.R) for plane-wave fields, ε is the field polarization, $\mathcal{E}$ = [ ħ ω_k / ( 2 ε₀ V )]^1/2 is the electric field per photon, and < p.ε > is the dipole matrix element.

References and notes

1. Hiroyuki Yokoyama & Ujihara K (1995). Spontaneous emission and laser oscillation in microcavities. Boca Raton: CRC Press. p. 6. ISBN 0-8493-3786-0.
2. Kerry Vahala (2004). Optical microcavities. Singapore: World Scientific. p. 368. ISBN 981-238-775-7.
3. Rodney Loudon (2000). The quantum theory of light. Oxford UK: Oxford University Press. p. 172. ISBN 0-19-850177-3.

See also

• Jaynes-Cummings model
• Quantum fluctuation
• Rabi frequency
• Rabi cycle
• Rabi problem
• Spontaneous emission