Trapping ultracold gases near cryogenic materials with rapid reconfigurability

Journal Article · Mon Dec 16 04:00:00 EST 2013 · Applied Physics Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4852017· OSTI ID:22253689

Naides, Matthew A.; Turner, Richard W.; Lai, Ruby A.; DiSciacca, Jack M.; Lev, Benjamin L. ^[1]

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1. Departments of Applied Physics and Physics and Ginzton Laboratory, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305 (United States)

We demonstrate an atom chip trapping system that allows the placement and high-resolution imaging of ultracold atoms within microns from any ≲100 μm-thin, UHV-compatible material, while also allowing sample exchange with minimal experimental downtime. The sample is not connected to the atom chip, allowing rapid exchange without perturbing the atom chip or laser cooling apparatus. Exchange of the sample and retrapping of atoms has been performed within a week turnaround, limited only by chamber baking. Moreover, the decoupling of sample and atom chip provides the ability to independently tune the sample temperature and its position with respect to the trapped ultracold gas, which itself may remain in the focus of a high-resolution imaging system. As a first demonstration of this system, we have confined a 700-nK cloud of 8 × 10{sup 4} {sup 87}Rb atoms within 100 μm of a gold-mirrored 100-μm-thick silicon substrate. The substrate was cooled to 35 K without use of a heat shield, while the atom chip, 120 μm away, remained at room temperature. Atoms may be imaged and retrapped every 16 s, allowing rapid data collection.

• OSTI ID: 22253689
• Journal Information: Applied Physics Letters, Journal Name: Applied Physics Letters Journal Issue: 25 Vol. 103; ISSN APPLAB; ISSN 0003-6951
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ATOMS
BAKING
GASES
GOLD
HEAT
LASERS
MATERIALS
RESOLUTION
RUBIDIUM 87
SILICON
SUBSTRATES
TEMPERATURE RANGE 0273-0400 K
TRAPPING