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Effective splitting of a trapped atomic wave packet in the motional ground state

Mei Zhang

Published Jan 1, 2007• 0 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

We briefly review the history and current progress in atom interferometry and atom optics. A descriptive summary of various types of interferometers is followed by a simple account of a new type of beamsplitter for trapped atoms, based on the theoretical idea recently published in Physical Review Letters by a group including ourselves. We show that a trapped atomic wave packet in the motional ground state can be coherently split into two paths effectively with two independent translating traps.

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We briefly review the history and current progress in atom interferometry and atom optics. A descriptive summary of various types of interferometers is followed by a simple account of a new type of beamsplitter for trapped atoms, based on the theoretical idea recently published in Physical Review Letters by a group including ourselves. We show that a trapped atomic wave packet in the motional ground state can be coherently split into two paths effectively with two independent translating traps.
For a single ion trapped in a harmonic potential under localization conditions beyond the Lamb-Dicke region, a motional wave packet can be coherently split by irradiating the trapped ion with appropriate counterpropagating traveling-wave laser pulses tuned to the second-sideband Raman resonance. Quantum interference between the split wave packets gives rise to interference fringes in the spatial probability distribution when the wave packets spatially overlap at a certain time during a periodic oscillation. An ion-trap interferometer is proposed on the basis of the wave-packet splitter in combination with quantum tomographic determination of the spatial interference fringes.
Optics and interferometry with matter waves is the art of coherently manipulating the translational motion of particles like neutrons, atoms and molecules. Coherent atom optics is an extension of techniques that were developed for manipulating \emph{internal} quantum states. Applying these ideas to translational motion required the development of techniques to localize atoms and transfer population coherently between distant localities. In this view position and momentum are (continuouse) quantum mechanical degree of freedom analogous to discrete internal quantum states. In our contribution we start with an introduction into matter-wave optics in section 1, discuss coherent atom optics and atom interferometry techniques for molecular beams in section 2 and for trapped atoms in section 3. In section 4 we then describe tools and experiments that allow us to probe the evolution of quantum states of many-body systems by atom interference.
Summary form only given.Atom interferometers have opened up new areas of fundamental and applied research. As well known from photon optics, multiple-beam interferometers offer an increased sensitivity on the relative phases between interfering waves. Very recently, first atomic multiple-beam interferometers were realized. These concepts are based on an atomic beam that is spatially split into coherent partial de Broglie waves, where the number of interfering waves is determined by the internal atomic multi-level scheme. We report on time-domain atomic interferometry within a two-level system.
In this paper, we present a brief overview of atom interferometry. This field of research has developed very rapidly since 1991. Atom and light wave interferometers present some similarities but there are very important differences in the tools used to manipulate these two types of waves. Moreover, the sensitivity of atomic waves and light waves to their environment is very different. Atom interferometry has already been used for a large variety of studies: measurements of atomic properties and of inertial effects (accelerations and rotations), new access to some fundamental constants, observation of quantum decoherence, etc. We review the techniques used for coherent manipulation of atomic waves and the main applications of atom interferometers.
Atom interferometry, in which atomic waves are coherently split and later recombined, has been called the Swiss Army knife of atomic physics because of its numerous applications [1]. Atom interferometers can be used to study gravity, observe quantum effects, and measure fundamental constants. However, the spitting of atomic beams has always been a challenging task. Several beam splitters for atoms have been developed over the years, many of which rely on complex, high-powered lasers whose photons collide with atoms to steer them along separate beam paths. Paul Hamilton and colleagues at the University of California, Berkeley, have built a more versatile beam splitter by using, for the first time, an optical cavity [2]. Laser pulses bounce back and forth inside the cavity, increasing the effective power in standing waves of light and reducing imperfections in the wave fronts. The light concentration within the cavity allows the use of common low-powered lasers for the initial pulses. The new design may lead to a universal atom interferometer with optical gratings that works with a wide range of atomic species.