Abstract

A Monte Carlo simulation method is developed to model quantized atomic motion in one-dimensional optical molasses.¹ We calculate atomic absorption and emission spectra and energy distribution functions for various J → J′ transitions coupled to linear and circularly polarized light for standing wave configurations.² We are particularly interested in generation of sidebands in atomic spectra corresponding to quantized atomic motion.³ Our Monte Carlo method is based on propagating an atomic center-of-mass wave packet and simulating a sequence of spontaneous emissions between families of Bloch states in the periodic laser-induced potentials. Propagation of the (periodic part of the) atomic wave function in time is performed by using a variant of the split-operator FFT algorithm. Band structure calculations for these atomic configurations are presented.

© 1992 Optical Society of America