Multiphoton Magnetooptical Trap

Journal Article · Fri Oct 23 00:00:00 EDT 2009 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVLETT.103.173003· OSTI ID:21370783

Saijun, Wu; Plisson, Thomas; Brown, Roger C; Phillips, William D; Porto, J V ^[1]

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1. Joint Quantum Institute, NIST and University of Maryland, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899 (United States)

We demonstrate a magnetooptical trap (MOT) configuration which employs optical forces due to light scattering between electronically excited states of the atom. With the standard MOT laser beams propagating along the x and y directions, the laser beams along the z direction are at a different wavelength that couples two sets of excited states. We demonstrate efficient cooling and trapping of cesium atoms in a vapor cell and sub-Doppler cooling on both the red and blue sides of the two-photon resonance. The technique demonstrated in this work may have applications in background-free detection of trapped atoms, and in assisting laser cooling and trapping of certain atomic species that require cooling lasers at inconvenient wavelengths.

• OSTI ID: 21370783
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Vol. 103, Issue 17; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.103.173003; (c) 2009 The American Physical Society; ISSN 0031-9007
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
CESIUM
COOLING
EXCITED STATES
LASERS
LIGHT SCATTERING
MAGNETO-OPTICAL EFFECTS
MULTI-PHOTON PROCESSES
PHOTONS
RESONANCE
TRAPPING
WAVELENGTHS
ALKALI METALS
BOSONS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ELEMENTS
ENERGY LEVELS
MASSLESS PARTICLES
METALS
SCATTERING