Effects of spin-destruction and spin-exchange collisions on alkali-metal relaxation and magnetometric response

doi:10.1088/1674-1056/ae37f7

中国物理B ›› 2026, Vol. 35 ›› Issue (4): 43401-043401.doi: 10.1088/1674-1056/ae37f7

Effects of spin-destruction and spin-exchange collisions on alkali-metal relaxation and magnetometric response

Feng Tang(汤丰)^1†, Jianjun Li(李建军)^2†, and Nan Zhao(赵楠)^1‡

1 Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing 100193, China;
2 State Key Laboratory of Photonics and Communications, School of Electronics, and Center for Quantum Information Technology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China

收稿日期:2025-11-04 修回日期:2025-12-23 接受日期:2026-01-14 发布日期:2026-04-07
通讯作者: Nan Zhao E-mail:nzhao@csrc.ac.cn
基金资助:
This work was supported by the Science Challenge Project (Grant No. TZ2025017).

Effects of spin-destruction and spin-exchange collisions on alkali-metal relaxation and magnetometric response

Feng Tang(汤丰)^1†, Jianjun Li(李建军)^2†, and Nan Zhao(赵楠)^1‡

1 Beijing Computational Science Research Center, Beijing 100193, China;
2 State Key Laboratory of Photonics and Communications, School of Electronics, and Center for Quantum Information Technology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China

Received:2025-11-04 Revised:2025-12-23 Accepted:2026-01-14 Published:2026-04-07
Contact: Nan Zhao E-mail:nzhao@csrc.ac.cn
Supported by:
This work was supported by the Science Challenge Project (Grant No. TZ2025017).

摘要/Abstract

摘要： Spin-exchange (SE) and spin-destruction (SD) collisions play a central role in determining the coherence properties of alkali-metal vapors and the performance of alkali-metal magnetometers in external magnetic fields. In this work, we investigate how these collisions influence spin relaxation dynamics and magnetometric response using a generalized Bloch equation that fully accounts for the coupled evolution of spin polarizations in different hyperfine manifolds. Our results show that in the low-field regime, both SE and SD collisions contribute to the suppression of transverse spin relaxation and the slowdown of spin precession, whereas longitudinal relaxation depends weakly on the SE rate and is predominantly governed by SD interactions. Building on the established relationship between spin relaxation rates and magnetometric response, we further analyze how SE and SD collisions affect the performance of two representative magnetometer architectures: the spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) magnetometer and the magnetic-resonance Mx-type magnetometer. The SERF magnetometer's response is found to be primarily determined by the SD rate, with only minor dependence on the nuclear spin quantum number. In contrast, the magnetic-resonance Mx-type magnetometer's sensitivity is significantly affected by both the magnetic field strength and the SE rate. While the resonance linewidth decreases with reduced magnetic field, the associated measurement accuracy deteriorates markedly. Consequently, reliable magnetic field reconstruction is only achievable in the high-field regime, where the Larmor frequency greatly exceeds the SE rate.

关键词: spin-exchange collision, spin-destruction collision, magnetometric response

Abstract: Spin-exchange (SE) and spin-destruction (SD) collisions play a central role in determining the coherence properties of alkali-metal vapors and the performance of alkali-metal magnetometers in external magnetic fields. In this work, we investigate how these collisions influence spin relaxation dynamics and magnetometric response using a generalized Bloch equation that fully accounts for the coupled evolution of spin polarizations in different hyperfine manifolds. Our results show that in the low-field regime, both SE and SD collisions contribute to the suppression of transverse spin relaxation and the slowdown of spin precession, whereas longitudinal relaxation depends weakly on the SE rate and is predominantly governed by SD interactions. Building on the established relationship between spin relaxation rates and magnetometric response, we further analyze how SE and SD collisions affect the performance of two representative magnetometer architectures: the spin-exchange relaxation-free (SERF) magnetometer and the magnetic-resonance Mx-type magnetometer. The SERF magnetometer's response is found to be primarily determined by the SD rate, with only minor dependence on the nuclear spin quantum number. In contrast, the magnetic-resonance Mx-type magnetometer's sensitivity is significantly affected by both the magnetic field strength and the SE rate. While the resonance linewidth decreases with reduced magnetic field, the associated measurement accuracy deteriorates markedly. Consequently, reliable magnetic field reconstruction is only achievable in the high-field regime, where the Larmor frequency greatly exceeds the SE rate.

Key words: spin-exchange collision, spin-destruction collision, magnetometric response

中图分类号: (Scattering of atoms and molecules)

34.50.-s

34.80.Nz (Spin dependence of cross sections; polarized beam experiments) 07.55.Ge (Magnetometers for magnetic field measurements)

Feng Tang(汤丰), Jianjun Li(李建军), and Nan Zhao(赵楠). Effects of spin-destruction and spin-exchange collisions on alkali-metal relaxation and magnetometric response[J]. 中国物理B, 2026, 35(4): 43401-043401.

Feng Tang(汤丰), Jianjun Li(李建军), and Nan Zhao(赵楠). Effects of spin-destruction and spin-exchange collisions on alkali-metal relaxation and magnetometric response[J]. Chin. Phys. B, 2026, 35(4): 43401-043401.

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Effects of spin-destruction and spin-exchange collisions on alkali-metal relaxation and magnetometric response

Effects of spin-destruction and spin-exchange collisions on alkali-metal relaxation and magnetometric response

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