Detection of nuclear quadrupole resonance via induced longitudinal magnetization

Abstract

The first measurement of pure nuclear quadrupole splitting energies by monitoring the induced longitudinal magnetic moment has been carried out on a crystal of sapphire at 4.2°K. Adiabatic fast passage was used to invert the populations of levels split by the quadrupole interaction. A small magnetic field removed the degeneracy of the nuclear states, allowing measurement of the linewidth and spin-lattice relaxation time. Unlike conventional techniques of adiabatic passage, this method, utilizing a SQUID magnetometer, allows determination of the widths of nuclear quadrupole lines without a sacrifice in signal level.