Measurement of DC and AC electric fields inside an atomic vapor cell with wall-integrated electrodes (2106.01968v1)

Abstract: We present and characterize an atomic vapor cell with silicon ring electrodes directly embedded between borosilicate glass tubes. The cell is assembled with an anodic bonding method and is filled with Rb vapor. The ring electrodes can be externally connectorized for application of electric fields to the inside of the cell. An atom-based, all-optical, laser-spectroscopic field sensing method is employed to measure electric fields in the cell. Here, the Stark effect of electric-field-sensitive rubidium Rydberg atoms is exploited to measure DC electric fields in the cell of $\sim$5 V/cm, with a relative uncertainty of 10%. Measurement results are compared with DC field calculations, allowing us to quantify electric-field attenuation due to free surface charges inside the cell. We further measure the propagation of microwave fields into the cell, using Autler-Townes splitting of Rydberg levels as a field probe. Results are obtained for a range of microwave powers and polarization angles relative to the cell's ring electrodes. We compare the results with microwave-field calculations. Applications are discussed.