Quantum Effects of Phase-Conjugate Mirrors on Atomic Systems

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Experimental and theoretical studies of the radiative properties of atoms that are in the presence of a phase- conjugate mirror (PCM) are proposed. The studies will investigate the prediction from quantum theory that an atom in its ground state is spontaneously excited when the atoms is radiatively coupled to a PCM. These results would confirm that the description of this system using classical field theory is inadequate to describe the effect of the PCM on the atoms. The PCM will be based on the nonlinear optical process of four- wave mixing in a potassium vapor cell. The quantum-noise properties of the PCM will be characterized as a precursor to the primary goal of the proposed research. Additional experimental and theoretical studies on the radiative properties of atoms in the presence of a phase- conjugate resonator will also be made. These studies offer the possibility of studying the behavior of a collection of atoms when a fraction of the field modes to which the atoms are coupled are in a squeezed vacuum state.