Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Physical Review A

Magneto-optical trapping of silver atoms

G. Uhlenberg, J. Dirscherl, HERBERT WALTHER

Published Nov 14, 2000• 83 citations
Publisher

Abstract

The realization of a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for silver atoms is reported. Trapping light at 328 nm was used and the trap was loaded directly from a thermal beam to store over ${10}^{6} \mathrm{atoms}$ with storage times of up to 16 s. Evidence of branching from the ${}^{2}{P}_{3/2}$ excited state to the metastable ${}^{2}{D}_{5/2}$ level was found and its decay rate determined. The temperature of the atoms is estimated to be $300(90) \ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{K}$ by measuring the mechanical properties of the MOT through observation of trap center oscillations.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.62.063404

Related papers

Magneto-optical trap of silver and potassium atoms

Michael Vayninger, Angela Xiang, Nachiket D. Bhanushali +6 more

We demonstrate a dual magneto-optical trap (MOT) of $^{109}\mathrm{Ag}$ and $^{39}\mathrm{K}$. For silver, a decreasing-field Zeeman slower loads a MOT of $1.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{8}$ atoms at a temperature of 0.74(5) mK, with laser cooling occurring primarily on the ${D}_{2}$ line of $4{d}^{10}5s\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}^{2}S_{1/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}5p\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}^{2}P_{3/2}$ at 328 nm. We create a Ag ``dark spot MOT,'' where shelving the atoms in a dark state enhances the captured atom number by a factor of 2 and the lifetime by a factor of 4. For potassium, we obtain $2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{8}$ trapped atoms, and further cooling on the ${D}_{1}$ transition via gray molasses results in a cloud of $1.2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{8}$ atoms at $7(1)\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\textmu{}\mathrm{K}$. We observe evidence of photoionization loss of the K MOT in the presence of Ag laser-cooling light, necessitating sequential rather than simultaneous loading for the two species. Our results on Ag point to simple and general laser cooling strategies for other coinage metals (Au, Cu). Furthermore, this work lays the foundation for the production of alkali-metal--coinage-metal degenerate quantum mixtures and highly polar molecules.

arXiv:2507.11434•Physical Review A•Nov 14, 2025•6 citations

Magneto-optical trap of titanium atoms

Scott Eustice, Jackson Schrott, Anke Stöltzel +4 more

We realize a magneto-optical trap (MOT) of titanium (Ti) atoms, performing laser cooling on the 498 nm transition between the long-lived 3 d 3 ( F 4 ) 4 s a 5 F 5 metastable state and the 3 d 3 ( F 4 ) 4 p y 5 G 6 o excited state. Without the addition of any repumping light, we observe MOTs of the three stable, I = 0 bosonic isotopes, Ti 46 , Ti 48 , and Ti 50 . Up to 8.30 ( 26 ) × 10 5 Ti 48 atoms are trapped at a maximum density of 1.3 ( 4 ) × 10 11 cm − 3 and at a temperature of 90 ( 15 ) µ K . By measuring the decay of the MOT, we constrain the leakage branching ratio of the cooling transition ( ≤ 2.5 × 10 − 6 ) and the two-body loss coefficient ( ≤ 2 × 10 − 10 cm 3 s − 1 ). Our approach to laser cooling Ti can be applied to other transition metals, enabling a significant expansion of the elements that can be laser cooled.

arXiv:2501.05544•Physical Review Research•Apr 8, 2025•5 citations

Magnetic trapping of metastable 3P2 atomic strontium

Sarah Nagel, Clayton E. Simien, S. Laha +3 more

We report the magnetic trapping of metastable ${}^{3}{P}_{2}$ atomic strontium. Atoms are cooled in a magneto-optical trap (MOT) operating on the dipole-allowed ${}^{1}{S}_{0}{\ensuremath{-}}^{1}{P}_{1}$ transition at 461 nm. Decay via ${}^{1}{\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{{P}_{1}}}^{1}{\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{{D}_{2}}}^{3}{P}_{2}$ continuously loads a magnetic trap formed by the quadrupole magnetic field of the MOT. Over ${10}^{8}$ atoms at a density of $8\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{9}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$ and temperature of 1 mK are trapped. The atom temperature is significantly lower than what would be expected from the kinetic and potential energies of atoms as they are transferred from the MOT. This suggests the occurrence of thermalization and evaporative cooling in the magnetic trap.

arXiv:physics/0212024•Physical Review A•Jan 13, 2003•96 citations

Midinfrared magneto-optical trap of metastable strontium for an optical lattice clock

Richard Hobson, William Bowden, Alvise Vianello +2 more

We report on the realization of a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for metastable strontium operating on the 2.92-$\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$ transition between the energy levels $5s5p{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{P}_{2}$ and $5s4d{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{D}_{3}$. The strontium atoms are initially captured in a MOT operating on the 461-nm transition between the energy levels $5{s}^{2}{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{1}{S}_{0}$ and $5s5p{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{1}{P}_{1}$, prior to being transferred into the metastable MOT and cooled to a final temperature of 6 $\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{K}$. Challenges arising from aligning the midinfrared and 461-nm light are mitigated by employing the same pyramid reflector to realize both MOTs. Finally, the 2.92-$\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$ transition is used to realize a full cooling sequence for an optical lattice clock, in which cold samples of $^{87}\mathrm{Sr}$ are loaded into a magic-wavelength optical lattice and initialized in a spin-polarized state to allow high-precision spectroscopy of the $5{s}^{2}{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{1}{S}_{0}$ to $5s5p{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{P}_{0}$ clock transition.

arXiv:2001.05210•Physical Review A•Jan 14, 2020•23 citations

Simple magneto-optical and magnetic traps for dysprosium

Liam Domett-Potts, Lucile Sanchez, Charlotte Hayton +6 more

Abstract Dysprosium (Dy) is the most magnetic element on the periodic table, making it excellent for studying dipolar atom-atom interactions. We report on a simple Dy magneto-optical trap (MOT) that captures atoms directly from the thermal beam using a single diode-laser system to generate the light. Additionally, the atoms are magnetically confined by the quadrupole magnetic field that also facilitates the MOT. The MOT loading time constant is τ b = 26 ms . Atoms can decay to a dark state that is magnetically trapped. The time constant for loading into this magnetic trap is τ d = 410 ms . The total magnetically trapped population is 1.14 × 10 5 atoms, with 85 % residing in the dark states. The magnetically trapped atoms have a temperature of 28 μ K , significantly below the Doppler limit. This population fulfills the requirements for a range of future experiments.

Journal of Physics B Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics•May 27, 2026•0 citations

Narrow-line magneto-optical trap for dysprosium atoms

T. Maier, H. Kadau, M. Schmitt +2 more

We present our technique to create a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for dysprosium atoms using the narrow-line cooling transition at 626 nm to achieve suitable conditions for direct loading into an optical dipole trap. The MOT is loaded from an atomic beam via a Zeeman slower using the strongest atomic transition at 421 nm. With this combination of two cooling transitions we can trap up to 2.0·10(8) atoms at temperatures down to 6 μK. This cooling approach is simpler than present work with ultracold dysprosium and provides similar starting conditions for a transfer to an optical dipole trap.

arXiv:1403.1499•Optics Letters•May 16, 2014•58 citations
The realization of a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for silver atoms is reported. Trapping light at 328 nm was used and the trap was loaded directly from a thermal beam to store over 106atoms{10}^{6} \mathrm{atoms}106atoms with storage times of up to 16 s. Evidence of branching from the 2P3/2{}^{2}{P}_{3/2}2P3/2​ excited state to the metastable 2D5/2{}^{2}{D}_{5/2}2D5/2​ level was found and its decay rate determined. The temperature of the atoms is estimated to be 300(90)\ensuremathμK300(90) \ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{K}300(90)\ensuremathμK by measuring the mechanical properties of the MOT through observation of trap center oscillations.
We demonstrate a dual magneto-optical trap (MOT) of 109Ag^{109}\mathrm{Ag}109Ag and 39K^{39}\mathrm{K}39K. For silver, a decreasing-field Zeeman slower loads a MOT of $1.5\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{8}$ atoms at a temperature of 0.74(5) mK, with laser cooling occurring primarily on the D2{D}_{2}D2​ line of $4{d}^{10}5s\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}^{2}S_{1/2}\ensuremath{\rightarrow}5p\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}^{2}P_{3/2}$ at 328 nm. We create a Ag ``dark spot MOT,'' where shelving the atoms in a dark state enhances the captured atom number by a factor of 2 and the lifetime by a factor of 4. For potassium, we obtain $2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{8}$ trapped atoms, and further cooling on the D1{D}_{1}D1​ transition via gray molasses results in a cloud of $1.2\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{8}$ atoms at $7(1)\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}\textmu{}\mathrm{K}$. We observe evidence of photoionization loss of the K MOT in the presence of Ag laser-cooling light, necessitating sequential rather than simultaneous loading for the two species. Our results on Ag point to simple and general laser cooling strategies for other coinage metals (Au, Cu). Furthermore, this work lays the foundation for the production of alkali-metal--coinage-metal degenerate quantum mixtures and highly polar molecules.
We realize a magneto-optical trap (MOT) of titanium (Ti) atoms, performing laser cooling on the 498 nm transition between the long-lived 3 d 3 ( F 4 ) 4 s a 5 F 5 metastable state and the 3 d 3 ( F 4 ) 4 p y 5 G 6 o excited state. Without the addition of any repumping light, we observe MOTs of the three stable, I = 0 bosonic isotopes, Ti 46 , Ti 48 , and Ti 50 . Up to 8.30 ( 26 ) × 10 5 Ti 48 atoms are trapped at a maximum density of 1.3 ( 4 ) × 10 11 cm − 3 and at a temperature of 90 ( 15 ) µ K . By measuring the decay of the MOT, we constrain the leakage branching ratio of the cooling transition ( ≤ 2.5 × 10 − 6 ) and the two-body loss coefficient ( ≤ 2 × 10 − 10 cm 3 s − 1 ). Our approach to laser cooling Ti can be applied to other transition metals, enabling a significant expansion of the elements that can be laser cooled.
We report the magnetic trapping of metastable 3P2{}^{3}{P}_{2}3P2​ atomic strontium. Atoms are cooled in a magneto-optical trap (MOT) operating on the dipole-allowed ${}^{1}{S}_{0}{\ensuremath{-}}^{1}{P}_{1}$ transition at 461 nm. Decay via ${}^{1}{\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{{P}_{1}}}^{1}{\stackrel{\ensuremath{\rightarrow}}{{D}_{2}}}^{3}{P}_{2}$ continuously loads a magnetic trap formed by the quadrupole magnetic field of the MOT. Over 108{10}^{8}108 atoms at a density of $8\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{9}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$ and temperature of 1 mK are trapped. The atom temperature is significantly lower than what would be expected from the kinetic and potential energies of atoms as they are transferred from the MOT. This suggests the occurrence of thermalization and evaporative cooling in the magnetic trap.
We report on the realization of a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for metastable strontium operating on the 2.92-$\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$ transition between the energy levels 5s5p3P25s5p{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{P}_{2}5s5p3P2​ and 5s4d3D35s4d{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{D}_{3}5s4d3D3​. The strontium atoms are initially captured in a MOT operating on the 461-nm transition between the energy levels 5s21S05{s}^{2}{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{1}{S}_{0}5s21S0​ and 5s5p1P15s5p{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{1}{P}_{1}5s5p1P1​, prior to being transferred into the metastable MOT and cooled to a final temperature of 6 $\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{K}$. Challenges arising from aligning the midinfrared and 461-nm light are mitigated by employing the same pyramid reflector to realize both MOTs. Finally, the 2.92-$\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$ transition is used to realize a full cooling sequence for an optical lattice clock, in which cold samples of 87Sr^{87}\mathrm{Sr}87Sr are loaded into a magic-wavelength optical lattice and initialized in a spin-polarized state to allow high-precision spectroscopy of the 5s21S05{s}^{2}{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{1}{S}_{0}5s21S0​ to 5s5p3P05s5p{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{P}_{0}5s5p3P0​ clock transition.
Abstract Dysprosium (Dy) is the most magnetic element on the periodic table, making it excellent for studying dipolar atom-atom interactions. We report on a simple Dy magneto-optical trap (MOT) that captures atoms directly from the thermal beam using a single diode-laser system to generate the light. Additionally, the atoms are magnetically confined by the quadrupole magnetic field that also facilitates the MOT. The MOT loading time constant is τ b = 26 ms . Atoms can decay to a dark state that is magnetically trapped. The time constant for loading into this magnetic trap is τ d = 410 ms . The total magnetically trapped population is 1.14 × 10 5 atoms, with 85 % residing in the dark states. The magnetically trapped atoms have a temperature of 28 μ K , significantly below the Doppler limit. This population fulfills the requirements for a range of future experiments.
We present our technique to create a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for dysprosium atoms using the narrow-line cooling transition at 626 nm to achieve suitable conditions for direct loading into an optical dipole trap. The MOT is loaded from an atomic beam via a Zeeman slower using the strongest atomic transition at 421 nm. With this combination of two cooling transitions we can trap up to 2.0·10(8) atoms at temperatures down to 6 μK. This cooling approach is simpler than present work with ultracold dysprosium and provides similar starting conditions for a transfer to an optical dipole trap.