Development of an optically pumped atomic magnetometer using a K-Rb hybrid cell and its application to magnetocardiography

We have developed an optically pumped atomic magnetometer using a hybrid cell of K and Rb. The hybrid optical pumping technique can apply dense alkali-metal vapor to the sensor head and leads to high signal intensity. We use dense Rb vapor as probed atoms, and achieve a sensitivity of approximately 100 fT(rms)/Hz(1/2) around 10 Hz. In this case, the sensitivity is limited by the system noise, and the magnetic linewidth is narrower than that for direct Rb optical pumping. We demonstrated magnetocardiography using the magnetometer and obtained clear human magnetocardiograms. Copyright 2012 Author(s). This article is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4742847]