Abstract
We describe a method for determining the number density of the alkali metal vapor by use of an evanescent wave in a single total internal reflection. The method is simple to use, and it has the following useful features: It is most suitable for determining the number density of dense (>1013 cm-3) alkali metal vapor and it permits the measurement of the alkali metal vapor number density in the vicinity (∼10-5cm) of cell surfaces. Using this method, we measured the number density of Rb metal vapor in the vicinity (∼10-5cm) of the cell wall in cells that contain only Rb metal and no buffer gas; we found that there is no systematic difference between the Rb number density near the surface and that in the bulk.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1904-1910 |
Number of pages | 7 |
Journal | Journal of the Optical Society of America B: Optical Physics |
Volume | 18 |
Issue number | 12 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 2001 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Statistical and Nonlinear Physics
- Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics