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Photon correlation transients in a weakly blockaded Rydberg ensemble

The non-linear and non-local effects in atomic Rydberg media under electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) make it a versatile platform for fundamental studies and applications in quantum information. In this paper, we study the dynamics of a Rydberg-EIT system in an ensemble that allows for more than one Rydberg excitation in the propagation direction. The density of two-level atoms is such that transient superradiant effects occur. We experimentally observe a cross-over between coherent collective emission (`flash') of two-level atoms to a Rydberg dressed regime ('dressed flash') under EIT condition. The complex dynamics are characterised using both intensity and time correlation measurements. We show that while steady-state EIT gives a second order correlation $g^{(2)}=0.79\pm 0.04$, the Rydberg-dressed flash exhibits anti-bunching down to $0.2\pm0.04$.