https://doi.org/10.1007/s100530170270
Implementation of a sapphire cell with external electrodes for laser excitation of a forbidden atomic transition in a pulsed E-field
Laboratoire Kastler Brossel (Laboratoire de l'École Normale Supérieure et de
l'uni ver sité Pierre et Marie Curie, associé au CNRS (UMR 8552).) , Département de Physique de
l'École Normale Supérieure, 24 rue Lhomond, 75231 Paris Cedex 05, France.
Corresponding author: a marianne@lkb.ens.fr
Received:
15
September
2000
Published online: 15 February 2001
We demonstrate the production of an electric field inside a high temperature cesium vapor cell with
external electrodes.
This external control of the electric field, which is not possible with a glass cell in presence of a cesium vapor, is achieved using
a cell made of sapphire, and is of particular interest for our ongoing Parity Violation experiment. We describe the main
components and the implementation on the set-up, including the pulsed high voltage generator. With pulse duration not exceeding 200 ns
the system provides a reversible longitudinal E-field of up to 2 kV/cm in the vapor at a density of 
at/cm3
without discharge.
Atomic signals attest the application of the electric field in the cell, with the predicted value. Further
improvements obtained with sapphire cells are also presented.
PACS: 32.80.Ys – Weak-interaction effects in atoms / 33.55.Be – Zeeman and Stark effects / 41.20.Cv – Electrostatics; Poisson and Laplace equations, boundary-value problems
© EDP Sciences, Società Italiana di Fisica, Springer-Verlag, 2001
