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Progress toward a chipscale MOT

Kaitlin Moore, J. P. McGilligan, Rodolphe Boudot, John E. Kitching

Published May 27, 2019• 0 citations
OpenAlex

Abstract

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.

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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 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.
Compact cold-atom sensors depend on vacuum technology. One of the major limitations to miniaturizing these sensors is the active pumps—typically ion pumps—that are required to sustain the low pressure needed for laser cooling. Although passively pumped chambers have been proposed as a solution to this problem, technical challenges have prevented successful operation at the levels needed for cold-atom experiments. The authors present the first demonstration of a vacuum package successfully independent of ion pumps for more than a week; their vacuum package is capable of sustaining a cloud of cold atoms in a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for greater than 200 days using only non-evaporable getters and a rubidium dispenser. Measurements of the MOT lifetime indicate that the package maintains a pressure of better than 2×10−7 Torr. This result will significantly enable the development of compact atomic sensors, including those sensitive to magnetic fields, where the absence of an ion pump will be advantageous.
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.
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.
Abstract Here, we report our studies on the continuous loading of a U-magneto-optical trap (U-MOT) on an atom-chip with a rubidium-(Rb)-vapor-generated background using a dispenser source in an ultra high vacuum environment. Using the U-MOT loading curves, the partial pressure due to the Rb vapor and the pressure due to the background gas have been estimated near the MOT cloud position. The estimated pressure due to the Rb vapor increased from ∼ Torr to Torr as the Rb-dispenser current was increased from 2.8 to 3.4 A. The increase in dispenser current also resulted in a decrease in loading time as well as the lifetime of the MOT cloud. This study will be useful for magnetic trapping experiments where accurate information of the pressure in a chamber is important for the lifetime of the magnetic trap.