This thesis describes the construction of a dual species setup using fermionic 40K and bosonic 87Rb with the goal of cooling to ultracold temperatures and quantum degeneracy, and also perfoming precision collision experiments using a novel optical collider. The setup is composed of a dual species magneto-optical trap, with transfer to an ultrahigh vacuum science cell achieved using a mechanical transport scheme. Atoms are cooled to ultracold temperatures using forced radio frequency evaporation in a Ioffe-Pritchard style magnetic trap. The optical collider utilises the optical dipole force to trap a sample of ultracold atoms and accelerate them towards a target sample using an acousto-optic modulator. The process of cooling 87Rb atoms in the |F = 2, mF = 2> hyperfine state to Bose-Einstein condensation is described, as well as progress towards production of ultracold 40K. Design, implementation, and characterisation of the optical collider is provided, showing that it is a precision metrology device.This thesis describes the construction of a dual species setup using fermionic 40K and bosonic 87Rb with the goal of cooling to ultracold temperatures and quantum degeneracy, and also perfoming precision collision experiments using a novel optical collider. The setup is composed of a dual species magneto-optical trap, with transfer to an ultrahigh vacuum science cell achieved using a mechanical transport scheme. Atoms are cooled to ultracold temperatures using forced radio frequency evaporation in a Ioffe-Pritchard style magnetic trap. The optical collider utilises the optical dipole force to trap a sample of ultracold atoms and accelerate them towards a target sample using an acousto-optic modulator. The process of cooling 87Rb atoms in the |F = 2, mF = 2> hyperfine state to Bose-Einstein condensation is described, as well as progress towards production of ultracold 40K. Design, implementation, and characterisation of the optical collider is provided, showing that it is a precision metrology device.

Jan 1, 20122 citations

Trapping an isotopic mixture of fermionic 84Rb and bosonic 87Rb atoms

S. G. Crane, Xinxin Zhao, Wayne A. Taylor +1 more

We have simultaneously confined fermionic ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ and bosonic ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms in overlapping magneto-optical traps in which radioactive ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms ${(t}_{1/2}=33$ d) have been trapped. We investigated ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ trap loss when overlapped with a cloud of ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms trapped from a background rubidium vapor. Collision loss measurements were taken with $\ensuremath{\sim}5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{5}$ and $\ensuremath{\sim}4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{7}$ atoms of trapped ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ and ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb},$ respectively. We have found a trapping solution for which there is negligible additional trap loss for ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ due to the presence of ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb},$ showing that the mixture can be readily prepared for a sympathetic cooling experiment.We have simultaneously confined fermionic ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ and bosonic ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms in overlapping magneto-optical traps in which radioactive ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms ${(t}_{1/2}=33$ d) have been trapped. We investigated ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ trap loss when overlapped with a cloud of ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms trapped from a background rubidium vapor. Collision loss measurements were taken with $\ensuremath{\sim}5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{5}$ and $\ensuremath{\sim}4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{7}$ atoms of trapped ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ and ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb},$ respectively. We have found a trapping solution for which there is negligible additional trap loss for ${}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}$ due to the presence of ${}^{87}\mathrm{Rb},$ showing that the mixture can be readily prepared for a sympathetic cooling experiment.

Physical Review AJun 13, 200026 citations

We have simultaneously confined fermionic

{}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}

and bosonic

{}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}

atoms in overlapping magneto-optical traps in which radioactive

{}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}

atoms

{(t}_{1/2}=33

d) have been trapped. We investigated

{}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}

trap loss when overlapped with a cloud of

{}^{87}\mathrm{Rb}

atoms trapped from a background rubidium vapor. Collision loss measurements were taken with $\ensuremath{\sim}5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{5}$ and $\ensuremath{\sim}4\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{7}$ atoms of trapped

{}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}

and

{}^{87}\mathrm{Rb},

respectively. We have found a trapping solution for which there is negligible additional trap loss for

{}^{84}\mathrm{Rb}

due to the presence of

{}^{87}\mathrm{Rb},

showing that the mixture can be readily prepared for a sympathetic cooling experiment.