We investigate theoretically population dynamics in an N-level system for pulses of arbitrary shape. In order to use Floquet theory the pulse only has to have finite support in time, which is well fulfilled in experiments. Furthermore the dynamics must be approximately time-local, which restricts to negligible memory effects. Despite the few requirements we are able to derive criteria for resonances, which means that all population rests in a preselected state after the pulse has been applied. We show that the necessary criterion on the Floquet quasienergies is a generalization of the pi-pulse criterion, derived within the Rotating Wave Approximation and adiabatic aproximation for the envelope by Holthaus et. al., to pulses of arbitrary shape. Furthermore we find that only the eigenvectors contain enough information to give a sufficient criterion for a resonance. We constuct the resonant N-level propagator and show that it is block diagonal, leading to a description by an effective 2-level-system composed of the initial and final state.
We discover a new mechanism of electronic population inversion using strong femtosecond pulses, where the transfer is mediated by vibrational motion on a light-induced potential. The process can be achieved with a single pulse tuning its frequency to the red of the Franck-Condon window. We show the determinant role that the sign of the slope of the transition dipole moment can play on the dynamics, and extend the method to multiphoton processes with odd number of pulses. As an example, we show how the scheme can be applied to population inversion in Na2.
We derive composite pulse sequences that achieve high-fidelity excitation of two-state systems in an optically dense, inhomogeneously broadened ensemble. The composite pulses are resistant to distortions due to the back-action of the medium they propagate in and are able to create high-fidelity inversion to optical depths $αz>10$. They function well with smooth pulse shapes used for coherent control of optical atomic transitions in quantum computation and communication. They are an intermediary solution between single $π$-pulse excitation schemes and adiabatic passage schemes, being far more e…
We introduce a method to rotate arbitrarily the excitation profile of universal broadband composite pulse sequences for robust high-fidelity population inversion. These pulses compensate deviations in any experimental parameter (e.g. pulse amplitude, pulse duration, detuning from resonance, Stark shifts, unwanted frequency chirp, etc.) and are applicable with any pulse shape. The rotation allows to achieve higher order robustness to any combination of pulse area and detuning errors at no additional cost. The latter can be particularly useful, e.g., when detuning errors are due to Stark shifts …
In this work, we exploit the idea of composite pulses to achieve robust population inversion in a three-level quantum system. The scheme is based on the modulation of the coupling strength, while the other physical parameters remain unchanged. The composite pulses sequence is designed by vanishing high-order error terms, and can compensate the systematic errors to any desired order. In particular, this scheme keeps a good performance under the disturbance of waveform deformations. This trait ensures that population inversion can be nearly obtained even when the pulse sequence has a short jump …
We introduce an intuitive and semi-analytical polaron master equation approach to model pulse-driven population inversion and emitted single photons from a quantum dot exciton. The master equation theory allows one to identify important phonon-induced scattering rates analytically, and fully includes the role of the time-dependent pump field. As an application of the theory, we first study a quantum dot driven by a time-varying laser pulse on and off resonance, showing the population inversion caused by acoustic phonon emission in direct agreement with recent experiment of Quilter {\em et al.}…
It is well known that area pulses make Rabi oscillation and chirped pulses in the adiabatic interaction regime induce complete population inversion of a two-state system. Here we show that chirped zero-area pulses could engineer an interplay between the adiabatic evolution and Rabi-like oscillations. In a proof-of-principle experiment utilizing spectral chirping of femtosecond laser pulses with a resonant spectral hole, we demonstrate that the chirped zero-area pulses could induce, for example, complete population inversion and return of the cold rubidium atom two-state system. Experimental re…
Imaging structures at the molecular level is a fast developing interdisciplinary research field that spans across the boundaries of physics and chemistry. High spatial resolution images of molecules can be obtained with photons or ultrafast electrons. In addition, images of valence molecular orbitals can be extracted via tomographic techniques based on the coherent XUV radiation emitted by a molecular gas exposed to an intense ultra-short infrared laser pulse. In this paper, we demonstrate that similar information can be obtained by inverting energy resolved photoelectron spectra using a simpl…
Up to now, experiments involving Mössbauer nuclei driven by x-rays have been restricted to the low-excitation regime. Here, a setup is proposed which promises significant excitation, ideally exceeding full inversion of the nuclear ensemble, at x-ray light sources under construction. We further introduce a method to experimentally verify such inversions, in which population inversions manifest themselves in symmetry flips of suitably recorded spectra. It neither requires per-shot spectra of the incoming x-ray pulses, nor absolute measurements of the scattered light intensity.
High fidelity and robustness in population inversion is very desirable for many quantum control applications. We expand composite pulse schemes developed for two-level dynamics, and present an analytic solution for the coherent evolution of an N-level quantum system with SU(2) symmetry, for achieving high fidelity and robust population inversion, which outperforms common solutions in N-level dynamics. Our approach offers a platform for accurate steering of the population transfer in physical multi-level systems, which is crucial for fidelity in quantum computation and achieving fundamental exc…
A change in the character of maser generation in a two-level system is found when the initial population inversion exceeds some threshold value proportional to the square root of the total number of atoms. Above this threshold, the number of photons begins to grow exponentially with time and the pulse with short leading edge and broadened trailing edge is generated. In this work, we attempt to explain the nature of this threshold. Coherent pulse duration estimated by its half-width increases significantly with increasing inversion, if all other parameters are fixed and the absorption is neglec…
We characterize the coherent dynamics of a two-level quantum emitter driven by a pair of symmetrically-detuned phase-locked pulses. The promise of dichromatic excitation is to spectrally isolate the excitation laser from the quantum emission, enabling background-free photon extraction from the emitter. Paradoxically, we find that excitation is not possible without spectral overlap between the exciting pulse and the quantum emitter transition for ideal two-level systems due to cancellation of the accumulated pulse area. However, any additional interactions that interfere with cancellation of th…
A method for measuring small energy level shifts in a qubit by coherent amplification of their effect is proposed. It is based on the repeated application of the same interaction pulse in two manners: with the same phase of each subsequent pulse, and with an alternating phase shift of $π$ (i.e. a minus sign) from pulse to pulse. Two specific types of pulses are considered: a resonant $π$ pulse and an adiabatic chirped pulse, both of which produce complete population inversion with high fidelity. In the presence of a weak ambient external electric or magnetic field, the ensuing Stark or Zeeman …
To coherently control a few-level quantum emitter, typically pulses with an energy resonant to the transition energy are applied making use of the Rabi mechanism, while a single off-resonant pulse does not result in a population inversion. Surprisingly, a two-color excitation with a combination of two off-resonant pulses making use of the Swing-UP of quantum EmitteR population (SUPER) mechanism is able to invert the system. In this paper, we provide an in-depth analysis of the SUPER scheme within the dressed-state picture. We show that the SUPER mechanism can be understood as a driving of the …
Swept-frequency pulses have found applications in a wide range of areas including spectroscopic techniques where efficient control of spins is required. For many of these applications, a good understanding of the evolution of spin systems during these pulses plays a vital role, not only in describing the mechanism of techniques, but also in enabling new methodologies. In magnetic resonance spectroscopy, broadband inversion, refocusing, and excitation using these pulses are among the most used applications in NMR, ESR, MRI, and $in$ $vivo$ MRS. In the present survey, a general expression for ch…
We propose a scheme to control the evolution of a two-level quantum system in the strong coupling regime based on the idea of reverse-engineering. A coherent control field is designed to drive both closed and open two-level quantum systems along user predefined evolution trajectory without utilizing the rotating-wave approximation (RWA). As concrete examples, we show that complete population inversion, an equally weighted coherent superposition, and even oscillationlike dynamics can be achieved. As there are no limitations on the coupling strength between the control field and matter, the sche…
We study the coherent dynamics of a two-level parabolic model and ways to enhance population transfer and even to obtain complete population inversion in such models. Motivated by the complete population inversion effect of zero-area pulses found in [1], we consider a scheme where a given coupling function is transformed to a zero-area coupling by performing phase-jump in the middle of the evolution. We also derive a universal formula for the effect of the phase-jump.
We develop a generic model for a cyclic quantum heat engine that makes it possible to coherently amplify a periodically modulated input signal without the need to couple the working medium to multiple reservoirs at the same time. Instead, we suggest an operation principle that is based on the spontaneous creation of population inversion in incomplete relaxation processes induced by periodic temperature variations. Focusing on Lindblad dynamics and systems with equally spaced energy levels, e.g. qubits or quantum harmonic oscillators, we derive a general working criterion for such cyclic quantu…
