Direct Two-Color Photoassociative Ionization in a Rubidium Magneto-Optic Trap

摘要

We report the observation of direct, two color photoassociative ionization (PAI)in collisions between 55Rb atoms optically cooled and confined in a magneto-optical trap. We also measure the resulting R2(+) ion spectrum and compare it to earlier trap loss fluorescence spectra. Unlike PAI in Na, which ionizes principally by collisional autoionization, the Rb2(*) intermediate photoionizes directly to Rb2(+) in a fixed optical field. These observations confirm PAI as a sensitive and broadly applicable spectroscopic tool.