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Physica Scripta

Laser manipulation of neutral atoms

Alain Aspect, Robin Kaiser, Nathalie Vansteenkiste, Christoph Ira Westbrook

Published Jan 1, 1995• 7 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We present an overview of the field of laser manipulation of atoms. Examples and trends are given for: laser cooling and trapping; subrecoil cooling; probes of cold atoms; collective effects in cold atoms samples; atom optics and interferometry.
DOI
10.1088/0031-8949/1995/t58/008

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In recent years, there has been significant interest in the laser manipulation of neutral atoms, and specifically in the use of light fields to manipulate not only the internal but also the external coordinates of an atom. Among the most dramatic results of this work have been the production of dense ultra-cold samples of trapped neutral atoms. These samples have been used to expand the horizons of fundamental physics and have made possible significant advancements in metrology. Furthermore, the ability to manipulate atomic motion with light has helped to create entirely new fields of research such as atom optics where matter wave analogues of light wave systems are investigated and optical where light is used to create a periodic array of atoms similar to crystals.
Abstract One of the most remarkable achievements of laser control is the manipulation of atomic particles, their velocities, positions, etc., which is referred to as laser cooling and laser trapping . These two effects are interrelated and usually prove effective when used jointly. That this is so one can see by considering as an example the laser cooling of trapped ions and the laser trapping of laser-cooled neutral atoms (Fig. 5.1). The sequences of processes in these two situations are directly opposite. Ions can easily be trapped in an electromagnetic trap of large depth (Paul 1990) and then be cooled for a long time by laser radiation (sideband cooling) (Wineland and Dehmelt 1975; Dehmelt 1990). Neutral atoms are first slowed down and cooled by laser radiation down to millikelvin temperatures, and only then confined in an optical trap. Trapped atoms can further be cooled to microkelvin temperatures. The present chapter and Chapter 6 consider the cooling and trapping of neutral atoms, the present chapter concentrating on their cooling, and Chapter 6 on trapping. But it would be reasonable first to familiarize the reader with the history of the early ideas in this field that eventually led to the advent of a new domain of physics—the physics of ultracold atoms and molecules (Chapters 7 and 8).
Laser cooling and laser manipulation of free neutral atoms have reached a level of sophistication not foreseen just a few years ago. This concerns trapping of neutral atoms at μK temperatures as well as the precise preparation of extreme dense and ultra cold atomic beams. These techniques offer plenty of new experiments answering basic physical questions or allowing totally new levels of precision. The following article will explain, how to prepare such cold beams and it will demonstrate the resulting possibilities for a Ramsey spectrometer at the intercombination line of magnesium. Furthermore first results with this spectrometer set up as magnesium atom interferometer will be presented.
This paper is a short summary of a presentation given at the Fourteenth International Conference on Atomic Physics in Boulder CO, August 1994. It describes several recent advances in the field of laser cooling, trapping and manipulation of neutral atoms: adiabatic transfer of linear momentum from light to atoms; trapping and cooling atoms in optical lattices; evaporative cooling of alkali atoms held in magnetic traps; cyclic cooling of atoms in a magnetic trap; and optical shielding of laser‐cooled and trapped atoms from collisions with other cold atoms. Some of the work described was done in my own laboratory at NIST in Gaithersburg, and some in other laboratories. I have tried to choose topics complementary to those treated by other speakers at the conference. This paper is intended more as a guide to the literature on the subjects treated than a complete treatment in itself.
The forces felt by atoms when illuminated with resonant radiation can reduce their velocity dispersion and confine them in a region of space for further probing and experimentation. The forces can be dissipative or conservative and allow manipulations of the external degrees of freedom of atoms and small neutral particles. Laser cooling and trapping is now an important tool for many spectroscopic studies. It enhances the density of atoms in phase space by many orders of magnitude reducing the need of large samples. These lecture notes review the fundamental principles of the field and show some of the applications to the study of the spectroscopy of radioactive atoms. 1