Multifunctional Metafiber for Pumping SERF Atomic Magnetometer

Release time:2025-07-04 Hits:

Journal:IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INSTRUMENTATION AND MEASUREMENT

Key Words:Atomic magnetometer, metafiber, multifunctional, quantum sensing and measurement

Abstract:A miniaturized spin-exchange relaxation-free(SERF) atomic magnetometer is an ultrasensitive device for biomagnetic dynamic measurements, yet it still remains challenging to realize easy-to-align and compact optical configuration while maintaining high sensitivity. In this study, we demonstrate a multifunctional metafiber, consisting of a compact metalens assembled on the facet of an optical fiber, for flexible and high-performance pump light delivery and manipulation in atomic magnetometers for the first time. By tailoring transmission and phase profiles of nanopillars, the metafiber simultaneously enables broadband collimation and polarization manipulation from 770 to 894 nm, a spectrum regime that covers the most commonly used alkali metals in quantum technologies. We integrate the metafiber with an SERF atomic magnetometer and achieve magnetic field measurement with a sensitivity of 51.12 fTHz−1/2(at 31.5 Hz). Beyond optically interfaced quantum systems, the demonstrated highly compact and easy-to-align multifunctional metafiber can also find widespread classical applications such as wavelength-multiplexing fiber-optic communications, fiber sensing, and fiber lasers.

Co-author:Ying Liu,Lihong Duan

First Author:Qingcheng Song,Wenlin Luan

Correspondence Author:Xia Yu

Translation or Not:no

Date of Publication:2025-04-01

Included Journals:SCI