Transient Density-Induced Dipolar Interactions in a Thin Vapor Cell.

We exploit the effect of light-induced atomic desorption to produce high atomic densities (n≫k^{3}) in a rubidium vapor cell. An intense off-resonant laser is pulsed for roughly one nanosecond on a micrometer-sized sapphire-coated cell, which results in the desorption of atomic clouds from both internal surfaces. We probe the transient atomic density evolution by time-resolved absorption spectroscopy. With a temporal resolution of ≈ 1 ns, we measure the broadening and line shift of the atomic resonances. Both broadening and line shift are attributed to dipole-dipole interactions. This fast switching of the atomic density and dipolar interactions could be the basis for future quantum devices based on the excitation blockade.