Light Shift and Light Broadening in the ⁸⁷Rb Maser

Abstract

A description of measurements of light-shift and light-broadening parameters for an 87 Rb maser operating between the field independent levels is reported. A parallel study of the spectral profile of theD 1 pumping line is described. Comparison between the experimental results and theoretical calculations, taking into account the spatial inhomogeneity of the pumping light in the absorption cell, is presented.