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Physical Review A

Efficient isotope separation by single-photon atomic sorting

M. Jerkins, Isaac Chavez, Uzi Even, Mark G. Raizen

Published Sep 15, 2010• 13 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We propose a general and scalable approach to isotope separation. The method is based on an irreversible change of the mass-to-magnetic moment ratio of a particular isotope in an atomic beam, followed by a magnetic multipole whose gradients deflect and guide the atoms. The underlying mechanism is a reduction of the entropy of the beam by the information of a single scattered photon for each atom that is separated. We numerically simulate isotope separation for a range of examples, which demonstrate this technique's general applicability to almost the entire periodic table. The practical importance of the proposed method is that large-scale isotope separation should be possible, using ordinary inexpensive magnets and the existing technologies of supersonic beams and lasers.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.82.033414

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We propose a general and scalable approach to isotope separation. The method is based on an irreversible change of the mass-to-magnetic moment ratio of a particular isotope in an atomic beam, followed by a magnetic multipole whose gradients deflect and guide the atoms. The underlying mechanism is a reduction of the entropy of the beam by the information of a single scattered photon for each atom that is separated. We numerically simulate isotope separation for a range of examples, which demonstrate this technique's general applicability to almost the entire periodic table. The practical importance of the proposed method is that large-scale isotope separation should be possible, using ordinary inexpensive magnets and the existing technologies of supersonic beams and lasers.
Isotope separation is one of the grand challenges of modern society and holds great potential for basic science, medicine, energy, and defense. We consider here a new and general approach to isotope separation. The method is based on an irreversible change of the mass-to-magnetic moment ratio of a particular isotope in an atomic beam, followed by a magnetic multipole whose gradients deflect and guide the atoms. The underlying mechanism is a reduction of the entropy of the beam by the information of a single-scattered photon for each atom that is separated. We numerically simulate isotope separation for a range of examples, including lithium, for which we describe the experimental setup we are currently constructing. Simulations of other examples demonstrate this technique's general applicability to almost the entire periodic table. We show that the efficiency of the process is only limited by the available laser power, since one photon on average enables the separation of one atom. The practical importance of the proposed method is that large-scale isotope separation should be possible, using ordinary inexpensive magnets and the existing technologies of supersonic beams and lasers.
Isotopes of barium are selectively excited to a metastable state using a single ring dye laser. The excited atoms are then deflected out of an atomic beam by an inhomogeneous magnetic field. The deflection of the beam is studied using a hot wire detector and a quadrupole mass spectrometer. Measurements are presented showing that nearly all atoms of a particle isotope can be excited from the 6s{sup 2} ground still to the 6s5d state and subsequently spatially separated. This method of isotope separation requires metastable states having lifetimes greater than about 100 {mu}sec. These states can be readily excited from the ground state in atoms such as the Group II elements.
We describe a novel method to enrich isotopes and isomers via magnetic deflection of optically polarized atomic beam. High electronic polarization with opposite signs for atoms of both isotopes respectively is achieved by selective optical pumping using lasers with different frequencies and polarizations and then the isotopes are enriched by deflecting the oppositely polarized isotopes along different directions by the inhomo-geneous magnetic field in the spin selective magnet. Separation selectivity and throughput are evaluated and the advantages, disadvantages and prospects of possible application of the present method are discussed in comparison with other existing methods. Experimental scheme with lithium or potassium is suggested.
Due to the similar physical and chemical properties, isotopes are usually hard to separate. On the other hand, the isotope shifts are very well separated in a high-resolution spectrum, making them possible to be addressed individually by lasers, thus separated. Here we report such an isotope separation experiment with Potassium atoms. The isotopes are independently optical pumped to the desired spin states, and then separated with a Stern-Gerlach scheme. A micro-capillary oven is used to collimate the atomic beam, and a Halbach-type magnet array is used to deflect the desired atoms. Finally, the 40K is enriched by two orders of magnitude. This magneto-optical combined method provides an effective way to separate isotopes and can be extended to other elements if the relevant optical pumping scheme is feasible.
The separation of isotopes in space and time by gas-surface atomic diffraction is presented as a new means for isotopic enrichment. A supersonic beam of natural abundance neon is scattered from a periodic surface of methyl-terminated silicon, with the ^{20}Ne and ^{22}Ne isotopes scattering into unique diffraction channels. Under the experimental conditions presented in this Letter, a single pass yields an enrichment factor 3.50±0.30 for the less abundant isotope, ^{22}Ne, with extension to multiple passes easily envisioned. The velocity distribution of the incident beam is demonstrated to be the determining factor in the degree of separation between the isotopes' diffraction peaks. In cases where there is incomplete angular separation, the difference in arrival times of the two isotopes at a given scattered angle can be exploited to achieve complete temporal separation of the isotopes. This study explores the novel application of supersonic molecular beam studies as a viable candidate for separation of isotopes without the need for ionization or laser excitation.