Parity Non-Conservation in Atoms
Schematic of the JILA/University of Colorado parity nonconservation apparatus. A beam of cesium atoms is optically pumped by diode laser beams, then passes through a region of perpendicular electric and magnetic fields where a green laser excites the transition from the 6S to the 7S state. Finally the excitations are detected by observing the florescence (induced by another laser beam) with a photodiode.
This research is reported by Bennett and Wieman in an upcoming issue of Physical Review Letters.
