The decoherence of nuclear spins in cryogenic solid state systems is so weak that hours long interrogation & storage times are feasible even at high spin densities. Motivated by this potential, my group is investigating the use of lasers to create, manipulate, & detect spin-polarized nuclei, such as 171Yb, embedded inside of cryogenic solids, such as thin films of frozen noble gases. 171Yb is a stable "laser-friendly" atom that has a ground state total angular momentum of 1/2 due only to its nuclear spin. These properties significantly decouple the 171Yb nucleus from its surrounding environment and make it an ideal prototype for optical studies. Noble gas solids are an attractive option because they are optically transparent and provide efficient, pure, stable, & chemically inert confinement for a wide variety of atomic and molecular species. Our long term goals are to (1) measure rare nuclear reactions relevant for nuclear astrophysics using single atom detection, (2) develop long-term storage of quantum information, and (3) test fundamental symmetries using rare nuclei with "pear"-shaped deformations.
In this talk, I will present the results of our optical spectroscopic study, performed at Argonne National Lab, of ytterbium atoms embedded in a frozen neon matrix, which includes the first experimental determination of the 23 second lifetime of the metastable state used in 171Yb optical lattice clocks. I will conclude with our plans at Michigan State to study the feasibility of spin-polarizing 171Yb nuclei by optical pumping and optically addressing individual 171Yb nuclear spins in medium.