Time development of the state multipoles of excited sodium atoms, pumped with dye lasers

摘要

Rate equations for optical pumping sodium atoms to the 32P3/2 (F=3) state are solved. Although the total upper‐state population reaches its equilibrium value after approximately the natural lifetime τ, the magnetic sublevel population (expressed in terms of state multipole moments) becomes stationary only after over 15–30τ even in the high‐intensity limit.