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Frontiers in Optics

Chip-scale MOT for Microsystems Technology

Argyrios T. Dellis, Matthew T. Hummon, Songbai Kang, Elizabeth A. Donley, John E. Kitching

Published Jan 1, 2016• 2 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We are developing a micro-fabricated platform to support the creation of laser cooled samples for chip scale instruments. Our chip scale cell is 4 mm thick and 28mm × 28mm wide, is made by anodically bonding glass windows to a silicon frame and is pumped by a 2 L/sec ion pump. Six independent laser beams, each having 1mW power, and a pair anti-Helmholtz coils are used to cool and trap ~ 5×105 atoms. We have characterized the MOT system and we are in the process of replacing the actively pumped cell by a passively pumped cell where the pumping elements are non-evaporable getters.

DOI
10.1364/fio.2016.fth5f.4

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We are developing a micro-fabricated platform to support the creation of laser cooled samples for chip scale instruments. Our chip scale cell is 4 mm thick and 28mm × 28mm wide, is made by anodically bonding glass windows to a silicon frame and is pumped by a 2 L/sec ion pump. Six independent laser beams, each having 1mW power, and a pair anti-Helmholtz coils are used to cool and trap ~ 5×105 atoms. We have characterized the MOT system and we are in the process of replacing the actively pumped cell by a passively pumped cell where the pumping elements are non-evaporable getters.
Chip-scale atomic devices built around micro-fabricated alkali vapor cells are at the forefront of compact metrology and atomic sensors. We demonstrate a micro-fabricated vapor cell that is actively pumped to ultra-high-vacuum (UHV) to achieve laser cooling. A grating magneto-optical trap (GMOT) is incorporated with a 4 mm-thick Si/glass vacuum cell to demonstrate the feasibility of a fully miniaturized laser cooling platform. A two-step optical excitation process in rubidium is used to overcome surface-scatter limitations to the GMOT imaging. The unambiguous miniaturization and form-customizability made available with micro-fabricated UHV cells provide a promising platform for future compact cold-atom sensors.
Chip-scale atomic devices built around micro-fabricated alkali vapor cells are at the forefront of compact metrology and atomic sensors. We demonstrate a micro-fabricated vapor cell that is actively pumped to ultra-high-vacuum (UHV) to achieve laser cooling. A grating magneto-optical trap (GMOT) is incorporated with a 4 mm-thick Si/glass vacuum cell to demonstrate the feasibility of a fully miniaturized laser cooling platform. A two-step optical excitation process in rubidium is used to overcome surface-scatter limitations to the GMOT imaging. The unambiguous miniaturization and form-customizability made available with micro-fabricated UHV cells provide a promising platform for future compact cold-atom sensors.
We report on progress toward forming a magneto-optical trap (MOT) in a passively-pumped, chipscale MEMS-fabricable package. This work is an essential step in integrating cold atoms into mass-producible, portable instruments\footnote{J Kitching, et al. \textbf{J. Phys: Conf. Ser.} 723, 1 (2016)},\footnote{JA Rushton, et al. \textbf{Rev. of Sci. Instr.} 85, 12 (2014)}. One major challenge is preserving ultra-high vacuum levels in anodically-bonded MEMS cells without the use of an active pump. Ultra-high vacuum levels are critical to forming a vapor-loaded MOT\footnote{T Arpornthip, et al. \textbf{PRA} 85, 033420 (2012)},\footnote{E Cornell, et al. In Collected Papers Of Carl Wieman, pp. 533-584, Sec. 2.8.4, (2008)} and attaining commercially-relevant cell lifetimes. Here, we report on experimentally-tested solutions to mitigating gas evolution in the 1-cc-volume MEMS cell during and after the fabrication process, as well as controlling rubidium-vapor content. We report on testing performed in our actively-pumped MEMS-cell MOT systems and outline remaining steps toward achieving a true chipscale MOT.
We show that micro-machined non-evaporable getter pumps (NEGs) can extend the time over which laser cooled atoms can be produced in a magneto-optical trap (MOT), in the absence of other vacuum pumping mechanisms. In a first study, we incorporate a silicon-glass microfabricated ultra-high vacuum (UHV) cell with silicon etched NEG cavities and alumino-silicate glass (ASG) windows and demonstrate the observation of a repeatedly-loading MOT over a 10 min period with a single laser-activated NEG. In a second study, the capacity of passive pumping with laser activated NEG materials is further investigated in a borosilicate glass-blown cuvette cell containing five NEG tablets. In this cell, the MOT remained visible for over 4 days without any external active pumping system. This MOT observation time exceeds the one obtained in the no-NEG scenario by almost five orders of magnitude. The cell scalability and potential vacuum longevity made possible with NEG materials may enable in the future the development of miniaturized cold-atom instruments.
We have developed a compact and highly efficient assembly for stimulated laser cooling of thermal rubidium atomic beams traveling upon planar silicon devices. Following precollimation via a silicon microchannel array, we perform beam brightening via a blue-detuned optical molasses [Aspect et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 57, 1688 (1986)]. Owing to the small size of the chip elements, we require only 8 mW to implement the efficient cooling scheme, making it well suited for future portable atomic sensors that require minimal size, weight, and power consumption. Small mirrors are fabricated and hand-assembled to precisely overlap a strong elliptical standing wave with a sheet-shaped atomic density distribution, with dimensions chosen precisely to match these. We reduce the transverse velocity spread to below 1 m/s within an interaction length of 4.5 mm above the silicon substrate. We use Doppler-sensitive two-photon Raman spectroscopy to characterize the cooling. In contrast to time-of-flight methods utilized previously, this approach requires a much shorter apparatus to achieve similar resolution. This hybrid of passive and active collimation paves the way toward the construction of fully fledged atomic instruments, such as atomic beam clocks and gyroscopes, entirely on-chip through batch-fabricated processes.
Chip-scale atomic devices combine elements of precision atomic spectroscopy, silicon micromachining, and advanced diode laser technology to create compact, low-power, and manufacturable instruments with high precision and stability. Microfabricated alkali vapor cells are at the heart of most of these technologies, and the fabrication of these cells is discussed in detail. We review the design, fabrication, and performance of chip-scale atomic clocks, magnetometers, and gyroscopes and discuss many applications in which these novel instruments are being used. Finally, we present prospects for future generations of miniaturized devices, such as photonically integrated systems and manufacturable devices, which may enable embedded absolute measurement of a broad range of physical quantities.