Time-resolved scattering of a single photon by a single atom

被引：0
作者：
Victor Leong
Mathias Alexander Seidler
Matthias Steiner
Alessandro Cerè
Christian Kurtsiefer
机构：
[1] Centre for Quantum Technologies,Department of Physics
[2] National University of Singapore,undefined
[3] National University of Singapore,undefined
[4] Present address: Data Storage Institute,undefined
[5] Agency for Science,undefined
[6] Technology and Research (A*STAR),undefined
[7] Singapore 138634,undefined
[8] Singapore,undefined
来源：
Nature Communications | / 7卷
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摘要：
Scattering of light by matter has been studied extensively in the past. Yet, the most fundamental process, the scattering of a single photon by a single atom, is largely unexplored. One prominent prediction of quantum optics is the deterministic absorption of a travelling photon by a single atom, provided the photon waveform matches spatially and temporally the time-reversed version of a spontaneously emitted photon. Here we experimentally address this prediction and investigate the influence of the photon’s temporal profile on the scattering dynamics using a single trapped atom and heralded single photons. In a time-resolved measurement of atomic excitation we find a 56(11)% increase of the peak excitation by photons with an exponentially rising profile compared with a decaying one. However, the overall scattering probability remains unchanged within the experimental uncertainties. Our results demonstrate that envelope tailoring of single photons enables precise control of the photon–atom interaction.
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