Characterizing high-nquasi-one-dimensional strontium Rydberg atoms

Abstract

The production of high-$n$, $n\ensuremath{\sim}300$, quasi-one-dimensional (quasi-1D) strontium Rydberg atoms through two-photon excitation of selected extreme Stark states in the presence of a weak dc field is examined using a crossed laser-atom beam geometry. The dipolar polarization of the electron wave function in the product states is probed using two independent techniques. The experimental data are analyzed with a classical trajectory Monte Carlo simulation employing initial ensembles that are obtained with the aid of quantum calculations based on a two-active-electron model. Comparisons between theory and experiment highlight different characteristics of the product quasi-1D states, in particular, their large permanent dipole moments, $\ensuremath{\sim}$1.0 to 1.2${n}^{2}e{a}_{0}$, where $e$ is the electronic charge and ${a}_{0}$ is the Bohr radius. Such states can be engineered using pulsed electric fields to create a wide variety of target states.