Abstract

We present a master equation that describes the dynamics of laser cooling of a trapped ion. It is valid in the Lamb–Dicke limit and rests on an adiabatic elimination combined with a degenerate perturbation treatment. It describes relaxation of probabilities and coherences in the harmonic-trap degrees of freedom. The eigenvalue spectrum the of the time-evolution operator is derived, and it follows that only one zero eigenvalue exists, giving the unique steady-state probability distribution. The coherences all decay to zero with time. The ultimate steady state is distribution, which can be characterized by a temperature. We also report a numerical calculation that a Planck supports our analytical work. The final energy of the cooling is given and discussed. Finally there is a comparison between the present results and our earlier, approximate, treatments.

© 1984 Optical Society of America

Dynamics of trapped particle cooling in the Lamb–Dicke limit

Stig Stenholm
J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 2(11) 1743-1750 (1985)

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