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IEEE Conference on Nanotechnology (IEEE NANO)

Cold-atom output from a near-field optical funnel

Akifumi Takamizawa, Hajime Ito, Shungo Yamada, Motoichi Ohtsu

Published Jan 24, 2004• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We demonstrated an atom funnel using blue-detuned near-field light. Cold Rb atoms generated by a magneto-optical trap (MOT) were introduced into the funnel and the output atoms were counted by an accumulative MOT detection system. The number of cold Rb atoms outputted from a 200-/spl mu/m exit hole was maximal at a blue detuning of 1.2 GHz under Sisyphus cooling. The flux intensity was estimated to be 10/sup 5/ atoms/cm/sup 2/s. To increase the flux intensity up to 10/sup 13/ atoms/cm/sup 2/s, we made an atom funnel with a 2-/spl mu/m exit hole.

DOI
10.1109/nano.2003.1231774

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We demonstrated an atom funnel using blue-detuned near-field light. Cold Rb atoms generated by a magneto-optical trap (MOT) were introduced into the funnel and the output atoms were counted by an accumulative MOT detection system. The number of cold Rb atoms outputted from a 200-/spl mu/m exit hole was maximal at a blue detuning of 1.2 GHz under Sisyphus cooling. The flux intensity was estimated to be 10/sup 5/ atoms/cm/sup 2/s. To increase the flux intensity up to 10/sup 13/ atoms/cm/sup 2/s, we made an atom funnel with a 2-/spl mu/m exit hole.
We use a magneto-optical trap as an integrating counter for descending cold atoms. In the case of cold 87 Rb atoms with an initial mean temperature of 9 µK, 60% of the total number of 2.6 × 10 7 are captured after a 26-cm free-fall and trapped for a long time of 270 s. From the capture efficiency and the decay time, the minimum detectable flux intensity of a cold 87 Rb atomic beam is estimated to be 2 × 10 5 atom/cm 2 ·s. The atom-counting system is used for detection and evaluation of a cold atomic beam produced out of a near-field optical funnel.
We describe atom deflection with a slit-type deflector as an elemental technique of precise atom control using near-field light. In the demonstration experiments, cold Rb atoms deflected by repulsive near-field light induced in a 200?nm-wide slit are detected by means of two-step photoionization. Then, we consider a near-field-light lens of atomic de Broglie waves by developing the atom deflector. The feasibility of nanofocusing is shown by numerical analyses with Fourier atom optics. Finally, we describe atom funnels with evanescent light to generate a cold atomic beam required for atom manipulation using nanometric near-field light. The flux intensity of cold Rb atoms outputted from a 240??m outlet is estimated to be 7.5 ? 107?atom?cm?2?s?1 at a blue detuning of 1.2?GHz. In order to increase the flux intensity to 1012?atom?cm?2?s?1, we develop a Si-made funnel with a micron-sized outlet.
Multireflection of cold Rb atoms occurs inside a reversed triangular hollow prism with a blue-detuned optical near field. We examine it with a probe light beam, using the frequency detuning and the diameter of an excitation light beam as parameters. In the first bounce, the number density of the reflected atoms reaches a maximum of 10 6 atom/cm 3 at a blue detuning of 0.7 GHz when the beam diameter is 4 mm. The Rb atoms repeat reflection with a period of about 15 ms and an efficiency of 83% per bounce. A cold Rb atomic beam with a high flux of 4 × 10 11 atom/(cm 2 ·s) can be generated through a near-field optical funnel composed of the prism.
We process a silicon-on-insulator substrate into a funnel structure with a 2-µm-side square-shaped outlet by photolithography, anisotropic chemical etching, sputtering, and drilling with a focused ion beam. The funnel element is designed to generate a cold atomic beam with a high flux intensity of 1 atom/nm 2 ·s using repulsive evanescent light. The evanescent light is produced in TE modes propagating through a 1-µm-thick TiO 2 layer deposited on the slope faces in the case of coupling near-infrared lights for collecting Rb atoms released from a magneto-optical trap. The decay length of evanescent light is measured with a fiber probe in the collection mode.