Some rules of good scientific writing

A non-native English speaking physics professor formulates obvious yet useful rules for writing research papers.Comment: 1 page, no figure

Gyroscopes based on nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond

We propose solid-state gyroscopes based on ensembles of negatively charged nitrogen-vacancy (${\rm NV^-}$) centers in diamond. In one scheme, rotation of the nitrogen-vacancy symmetry axis will induce Berry phase shifts in the ${\rm NV^{-}}$ electronic ground-state coherences proportional to the solid angle subtended by the symmetry axis. We estimate sensitivity in the range of $5\times10^{-3} {\rm rad/s/\sqrt{Hz}}$ in a 1 ${\rm mm^3}$ sensor volume using a simple Ramsey sequence. Incorporating dynamical decoupling to suppress dipolar relaxation may yield sensitivity at the level of $10^{-5} {\rm rad/s/\sqrt{Hz}}$. With a modified Ramsey scheme, Berry phase shifts in the ${\rm ^{14}N}$ hyperfine sublevels would be employed. The projected sensitivity is in the range of $10^{-5} {\rm rad/s/\sqrt{Hz}}$, however the smaller gyromagnetic ratio reduces sensitivity to magnetic-field noise by several orders of magnitude. Reaching $10^{-5} {\rm rad/s/\sqrt{Hz}}$ would represent an order of magnitude improvement over other compact, solid-state gyroscope technologies.Comment: 3 figures, 5 page

Nonlinear magneto-optical rotation of frequency-modulated light resonant with a low-J transition

A low-light-power theory of nonlinear magneto-optical rotation of frequency-modulated light resonant with a J=1->J'=0 transition is presented. The theory is developed for a Doppler-free transition, and then modified to account for Doppler broadening and velocity mixing due to collisions. The results of the theory are shown to be in qualitative agreement with experimental data obtained for the rubidium D1 line.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures, v.2 edited for clarit

Constraints on anomalous spin-spin interactions from spin-exchange collisions

Measured and calculated cross sections for spin-exchange between alkali atoms and noble gases (specifically sodium and helium) are used to constrain anomalous spin-dependent forces between nuclei at the atomic scale ($\sim 10^{-8}~{\rm cm}$). Combined with existing stringent limits on anomalous short-range, spin-dependent couplings of the proton, the dimensionless coupling constant for a heretofore undiscovered axial vector interaction of the neutron arising from exchange of a boson of mass $\lesssim 100~{\rm eV}$ is constrained to be $g_A^n/\sqrt{4 \pi \hbar c} < 2 \times 10^{-3}$. Constraints are established for a velocity- and spin-dependent interaction \propto \prn{\mathbf{I} \cdot \mathbf{v}} \prn{\mathbf{K} \cdot \mathbf{v}}, where $\mathbf{I}$ and $\mathbf{K}$ are the nuclear spins of He and Na, respectively, and $\mathbf{v}$ is the relative velocity of the atoms. Constraints on torsion gravity are also considered.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Robust, High-speed, All-Optical Atomic Magnetometer

A self-oscillating magnetometer based on the nonlinear magneto-optical rotation effect with separate modulated pump and unmodulated probe beams is demonstrated. This device possesses a bandwidth exceeding 1\khz. Pump and probe are delivered by optical fiber, facilitating miniaturization and modularization. The magnetometer has been operated both with vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs), which are well suited to portable applications, and with conventional edge-emitting diode lasers. A sensitivity of around $3 {\rm nG}$ is achieved for a measurement time of 1\s.Comment: 8 pages, 5 fig

Nonlinear magneto-optical rotation in optically thick media

Nonlinear magneto-optical rotation is a sensitive technique for measuring magnetic fields. Here, the shot-noise-limited magnetometric sensitivity is analyzed for the case of optically-thick media and high light power, which has been the subject of recent experimental and theoretical investigations.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure

Influence of magnetic-field inhomogeneity on nonlinear magneto-optical resonances

In this work, a sensitivity of the rate of relaxation of ground-state atomic coherences to magnetic-field inhomogeneities is studied. Such coherences give rise to many interesting phenomena in light-atom interactions, and their lifetimes are a limiting factor for achieving better sensitivity, resolution or contrast in many applications. For atoms contained in a vapor cell, some of the coherence-relaxation mechanisms are related to magnetic-field inhomogeneities. We present a simple model describing relaxation due to such inhomogeneities in a buffer-gas-free anti-relaxation coated cell. A relation is given between relaxation rate and magnetic-field inhomogeneities including the dependence on cell size and atomic spices. Experimental results, which confirm predictions of the model, are presented. Different regimes, in which the relaxation rate is equally sensitive to the gradients in any direction and in which it is insensitive to gradients transverse to the bias magnetic field, are predicted and demonstrated experimentally.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, Submitted to Phys. Rev.