Inhibition of inhomogeneous dephasing by a strong stochastic optical field

We examine the buildup of atomic dipoles by a single broadband light pulse and their subsequent rephasing to produce a coherent transient signal. Within the assumption of short-time correlation for the light field, the theoretical model predicts the inhibition of inhomogeneous dephasing by the strong stochastic field. A geometrical picture of the effect is presented that uses a diffusion model of the Bloch vector headings on the Bloch sphere. The model is applied to the specific case of a stimulated photon echo in an angled-beam configuration. The corresponding experiment is performed in calcium vapor, and the expected inhibition effect is observed. The decay of the echo intensity as a function of the delay between the two first weak pulses is found to agree with the theoretical model.