Absorption spectrum and gain without inversion of a driven two-level atom with arbitrary probe intensity in a squeezed vacuum

Abstract

We examine the response of a coherently driven two-level atom interacting with a broadband squeezed vacuum to a probe beam of arbitrary intensity. The equations of motion for the reduced density matrix elements are numerically solved by nonperturbative matrix inversion methods. For large driving intensities, the absorption spectrum exhibits a number of multiphoton absorption peaks with increasing probe strength in a standard vacuum and in a squeezed vacuum with small photon numbers, while the multiphoton absorption peaks are wiped out for large squeezed photon numbers. Strong gain without inversion at line center can be obtained in the presence of the squeezed vacuum when the probe strength does not exceed the driving one. The absorption spectrum is phase sensitive. We also find the presence of remarkable, very narrow structures at line center. In general, the spectrum is symmetric when \ensuremath{\Phi}=0 and \ensuremath{\pi}; otherwise, it is asymmetric and displays a dispersivelike profile at line center.