Quantifying the role of thermal motion in free-space light-atom interaction
Quantifying the role of thermal motion in free-space light-atom interaction
We demonstrate 17.7(1)% extinction of a weak coherent field by a single atom. We observe a shift of the resonance frequency and a decrease in interaction strength with the external field when the atom, initially at 21(1) $\mu$K, is heated by the recoil of the scattered photons. Comparing to a …