RADIATING COHERENT ATOMIC WAVE-PACKETS

Recent progress in the production and control of atomic wave packets calls for reexamination of the most fundamental quantum optical processes. We examined the evolution of the atomic wave packet resonantly driven by the monochromatic laser beam and the spontaneous emission from an extended atom. We stress the role of Doppler shifts in the dephasing of the atomic dipole. New effects of single-pulse photon echo, homogeneous Doppler modification of the emission line, and interference effects in the coherent part of the emission spectrum are discussed. We also present the emission spectra of an atom oscillating in a harmonic trap.