Abstract
We report on a substantial light-force-induced line-center shift of the sub-Doppler dip in a saturation spectroscopy configuration where mechanical effects are expected to be negligible. We observe the shift on the open transition of that is relevant for a determination of the fine-structure constant [Phys. Rev. Lett. 82, 1112 (1999)]. We discuss the physical origin of the shift and we provide a numerical analysis to support our interpretation. The shift can be quite important for various other high-precision spectroscopy measurements.
- Received 14 January 1999
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.60.4164
©1999 American Physical Society