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Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics Pacific Rim (CLEO-PR)

Design of a compact diode laser system for dual-species atom interferometry with rubidium and potassium in space

Oliver Anton, Klaus Döringshoff, Vladimir Schkolnik, Simon Kanthak, Christian Kürbis, Jens Große, Michael Elsen, André Wenzlawski, Moritz Mihm, Patrick Windpassinger, Markus Krutzik, Achim Peters

Published Jul 1, 2017• 2 citations
Publisher

Abstract

We report on a micro-integrated high power diode laser based system for the MAIUS II/III missions. The laser system features fiber coupled and frequency stabilized external cavity diode lasers (ECDL) for laser cooling, Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) generation and dual species atom interferometry with rubidium and potassium on board a sounding rocket.

DOI
10.1109/cleopr.2017.8119018

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We report on a micro-integrated high power diode laser based system for the MAIUS II/III missions. The laser system features fiber coupled and frequency stabilized external cavity diode lasers (ECDL) for laser cooling, Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) generation and dual species atom interferometry with rubidium and potassium on board a sounding rocket.
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In January 2017 a first sounding rocket mission housing experiments on matter-wave interferometry, MAIUS-1 (Materiewellen-Interferometrie unter Schwerelosigkeit Matter-Wave Interferometry under Microgravity), has been launched. Following this campaign, two sounding rocket missions, MAIUS-2 and MAIUS-3, are planned to perform sequential and simultaneous dual-species atom interferometry with Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) of Potassium-41 and Rubidium-87. The scientific payload of the MAIUS missions will be launched on-board a VSB-30 sounding rocket launched from Esrange in Sweden. The ights of these rockets allows for approximately 360 s of microgravity conditions. It therefore overs a microgravity environment for experiments on timescales not accessible in ground based experiments, such as in the drop tower. During ascent of the rocket, vibrational loads of up to 1.8 g RMS in the frequency range of 20- 2000 Hz and accelerations of up to 13 g can occur. Furthermore, static loads, caused by the re-entry and the landing, can be as high as 50 g. Both missions MAIUS-2 and MAIUS-3 y the same payload, called MAIUS-B. Consequently, the payload needs to be designed to withstand the aforementioned loads
Abstract We report on the design and the construction of a sounding rocket payload capable of performing atom interferometry with Bose-Einstein condensates of 41^{41}41 41 K and 87^{87}87 87 Rb. The apparatus is designed to be launched in two consecutive missions with a VSB-30 sounding rocket and is qualified to withstand the expected vibrational loads of 1.8 g root-mean-square in a frequency range between 20–2000 Hz and the expected static loads during ascent and re-entry of 25 g. We present a modular design of the scientific payload comprising a physics package, a laser system, an electronics system and a battery module. A dedicated on-board software provides a largely automated process of predefined experiments. To operate the payload safely in laboratory and flight mode, a thermal control system and ground support equipment has been implemented and will be presented. The payload presented here represents a cornerstone for future applications of matter wave interferometry with ultracold atoms on satellites.
The QUANTUS consortium started activities to perform atom interferometry on a sounding rocket in the year 2011. Three sounding rocket missions (MAIUS-1 to MAIUS-3) have been planned to demonstrate BoseEinstein condensation and atom interferometry with rubidium and potassium atoms. Two different payloads MAIUS-A and MAIUS-B have been designed qualified and integrated in the time frame from 2011 until 2020. The MAIUS-A scientific payload is capable of performing single species experiment with rubidium only and was used as a technology demonstrator in the MAIUS-1 mission. The MAIUS-1 mission was conducted in fall 2016. On the 23rd of January 2017 the payload MAIUS-A was launched on a VSB-30 sounding rocket. The payload created the first Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) and performed atom interferometry aboard a sounding rocket with rubidium 87 atoms [Becker 2018]. Its successor MAIUS-B will be able to perform simultaneous experiments with Bose-Einstein Condensates of Rubidium-87 and Potassium-41 atoms. In order to achieve this ambitious scientific goal the experiments use various sensitive instruments imposing strong requirements on the thermal and mechanical design of the scientific payload. This paper gives a summary of the MAIUS-A and MAIUS-B scientific payload design with a focus on the thermal control system. Furthermore, the design of the GSE and the water cooling umbilicals is presented. The paper closes with an outlook on future atom interferometry payloads on sounding rockets and beyond.
We demonstrate a dual-laser architecture capable of GHz-scale rapid frequency hopping for atom interferometers (AIs). The system integrates two phase-locked fixed-external-cavity diode lasers: a reference laser stabilized to Rubidium 87 D 2 transition and a slave laser phase-locked to the reference via an optical phase-lock loop. This configuration achieves rapid frequency hopping of 1.1 GHz in 65 µs without unlock-and-relock process. Validated through Raman spectroscopy and optical depth measurements in a fiber-guided AI, the laser system provides a potential solution for developing miniaturized portable AIs.
We report on the design and the construction of a sounding rocket payload capable of performing atom interferometry with Bose-Einstein condensates of 41^{41}41K and 87^{87}87Rb. The apparatus is designed to be launched in two consecutive missions with a VSB-30 sounding rocket and is qualified to withstand the expected vibrational loads of 1.8 g root-mean-square in a frequency range between 20 - 2000 Hz and the expected static loads during ascent and re-entry of 25 g. We present a modular design of the scientific payload comprising a physics package, a laser system, an electronics system and a battery module. A dedicated on-board software provides a largely automated process of predefined experiments. To operate the payload safely in laboratory and flight mode, a thermal control system and ground support equipment has been implemented and will be presented. The payload presented here represents a cornerstone for future applications of matter wave interferometry with ultracold atoms on satellites.