Fluorescence weakening due to radiation trapping in a high density cold-atom cloud

Abstract

We have measured the change of fluorescence from cold 87Rb atoms after magnetic field of the magneto-optic trap is turn off. A rise in fluorescence within several tens of milliseconds was observed. Analyzing this phenomenon in connection with the experimental conditions, we found that incoherent pumping field due to radiation trapping in the high density cold-atom cloud was the reason of fluorescence weakening under tight confinement by the magneto-optic trap. We have also performed a simple numerical simulation, which indicated that the calculations agree with experimental results only when the effect of frequency redistribution of scattered light is taken into account.