RESONANCE FLUORESCENCE IN AN ATOM PLUS DIELECTRIC MICROSPHERE SYSTEM EXCITED BY A SINGLE-PHOTON

The resonance interaction of a two-level atom with a continuum of free -space modes modified by the presence of a dielectric microsphere (mod ified free-space modes - MFSMs) is studied. In the case that quantized MFSMs are initially excited within the contour of one of the resonanc e modes of the microsphere, the spectrum of emitted photons depends st rongly on the excitation method. Under optimal excitation conditions e fficient excitation of the atom accompanied by the formation of a Rabi doublet in the fluorescence spectrum occur. As the excitation conditi ons depart from optimality, the spectrum becomes a triplet. If the dep arture from optimality of excitation is large, the atom remains essent ially unexcited, and the fluorescence spectrum has a singlet character . (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics.