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Title: Creating versatile atom traps by applying near-resonant laser light in magnetic traps

Journal Article · · Physical Review. A
; ;  [1];  [2]
  1. Zentrum fuer Optische Quantentechnologien, Universitaet Hamburg, Luruper Chaussee 149, D-22761 Hamburg (Germany)
  2. School of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Science, University of Nottingham, Nottingham (United Kingdom)

We utilize the combination of two standard trapping techniques, a magnetic trap and an optical trap in a Raman setup, to propose a versatile and tunable trap for cold atoms. The created potential provides several advantages over conventional trapping potentials. One can easily convert the type of the trap, for example, from a single-well to a double-well trap. Atoms in different internal states can be trapped in different trap types, thereby enabling the realization of experiments with multicomponent Bose-Einstein condensates. Moreover, one can achieve variations of the trapping potential on small length scales without the need of microstructures. We present the potential surfaces for different setups, demonstrate their tunability, give a semianalytical expression for the potential, and propose experiments which can be realized within such a trap.

OSTI ID:
21408851
Journal Information:
Physical Review. A, Vol. 81, Issue 5; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.81.053414; (c) 2010 The American Physical Society; ISSN 1050-2947
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English