Spectroscopic detection of atom-surface interactions in an atomic-vapor layer with nanoscale thickness

Abstract

We measure the resonance line shape of atomic-vapor layers with nanoscale thickness confined between two sapphire windows. The measurement is performed by scanning a probe laser through resonance and collecting the scattered light. The line shape is dominated by the effects of Dicke narrowing, self-broadening, and atom-surface interactions. By fitting the measured line shape to a simple model we discuss the possibility to extract information about the atom-surface interaction.