Optical pumping redistributes populations among internal quantum states by selective photon absorption followed by spontaneous emission. It can prepare atoms for measurement and participate in sub-Doppler cooling.
Articles by others on the same topic
Optical pumping is a process used in physics and engineering to manipulate the energy states of atoms or molecules using light. It involves the absorption of photons, usually from a laser or other light source, to excite electrons in an atom from a lower energy state to a higher energy state. This process can selectively populate certain energy levels, leading to a non-equilibrium distribution of atomic or molecular states.