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Dark resonances in the 154Sm Λ-system 4f66s2(7F0) ↔ 4f66s6p(9F10) ↔ 4f6s2(7F1) are observed alongside the velocity selective optical pumping. The shape of the resulting spectra strongly depended on the buffer gas (He, Ar) pressure due to velocity-changing collisions (VCC): the sign of the effect could be reversed from the “dark” to the “bright” resonance. The observed spectra are interpreted within the framework of the hard-sphere collision model. The role of VCC in the formation of the “dark state” in the Λ-system is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Minimization of internal degrees of freedom is an important step in the cooling of atomic species to degeneracy temperature. Here, we report on the loading of 6 × 105 thulium atoms optically polarized at maximum possible magnetic quantum number state into dipole trap operating at 532 nm. The purity of polarizations of the atoms was experimentally verified using a Stern–Gerlach-type experiment. Experimental measured polarization of the state is [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]