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Acta Physica Polonica A

Interferometry and Dissipative Optics with Atoms

Pascal Szriftgiser, David Guéry-Odelin, Pierre Desbiolles, Jean Dalibard, Markus Arndt, Andrew M. Steane

Published Jan 1, 1998• 4 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We have designed a gravitational cavity for ultra-cold atoms using an atomic mirror made from an evanescent laser wave.By a temporal variation of the evanescent wave intensity, we have realized various atom optics components such as temporal slits and phase modulators.We have also designed an atom interferometer using this cavity which proves that the coherence of the de Broglie waves can be preserved during the bounce of the atoms on the mirror.Finally we show that an efficient cooling of the atoms inside the cavity can be achieved using a Sisyphus process during the bounce.

DOI
10.12693/aphyspola.93.197

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We have designed a gravitational cavity for ultra-cold atoms using an atomic mirror made from an evanescent laser wave.By a temporal variation of the evanescent wave intensity, we have realized various atom optics components such as temporal slits and phase modulators.We have also designed an atom interferometer using this cavity which proves that the coherence of the de Broglie waves can be preserved during the bounce of the atoms on the mirror.Finally we show that an efficient cooling of the atoms inside the cavity can be achieved using a Sisyphus process during the bounce.
We present an experiment where a cloud of cold caesium atoms is dropped onto an atomic mirror formed by a laser evanescent wave, and is cooled during the reflection. This cooling is due to a single Sisyphus process, transferring atoms from one ground-state hyperfine level to another, less coupled to the evanescent wave. We compare our results with a simple one-dimensional theoretical model. We also give the first experimental evidence for a large increase in the confinement lifetime of the atoms in this ‘gravitational cavity’ because of the cooling process.
We propose a trap based on an evanescent light wave which is formed on the surface of a conical or a pyramidal cavity in a glass substrate. The far blue-detuned evanescent wave acts as a mirror for atoms, bouncing on it in the gravitational field. In addition, fast and deep Sisyphus cooling in the evanescent wave can be organized for alkali atoms. This leads to the cooling of the atoms down to the recoil-limited temperature and their collection in the field- free region near the bottom of the trap, to form an atomic gas of extremely high density.
Summary form only given, as follows. Atomic cavities provide a convenient way to store atoms without perturbing them too much. We have recently built such a cavity for cesium atoms. A curved mirror was made for an evanescent wave, formed by internal reflection of a quasiresonant laser beam at a curved glass surface. A cold cloud of cesium atoms was dropped onto the mirror (Fig. 1a) and observed to rebound up to 10 times (Fig. 1b). The mirror size and reflectivity were studied, and reasonable agreement with a simple theory was obtained. With 800 mW of laser power and a mirror of 1 mm diameter, we observed up to 73% of the atoms returning after each bounce. We will present these experimental results, and we will also discuss some prospects to investigate the quantum nature of the atomic motion in such a cavity.
A novel atomic beam splitter, using reflection of atoms off an evanescent light wave, is investigated theoretically. The intensity or frequency of the light is modulated in order to create sidebands on the reflected de Broglie wave. The weights and phases of the various sidebands are calculated using three different approaches: the Born approximation, a semiclassical path integral approach, and a numerical solution of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. We show how this modulated mirror could be used to build practical atomic interferometers.
A novel atomic beam splitter, using reflection of atoms off an evanescent light wave, is investigated theoretically. The intensity or frequency of the light is modulated in order to create sidebands on the reflected de Broglie wave. The weights and phases of the various sidebands are calculated using three different approaches: the Born approximation, a semiclassical path integral approach, and a numerical solution of the time-dependent Schrödinger equation. We show how this modulated mirror could be used to build practical atomic interferometers.