All-optical 3D atomic loops generated with Bessel light fields

The propagation invariance of Bessel beams as well as their transversal structure are used to perform a comparative analysis of their effect on cold atoms for four different configurations and combinations thereof. We show that, even at temperatures for which the classical description of the atom center of mass motion is valid, the interchange of momentum, energy and orbital angular momentum between light and atoms yields efficient tools for all-optical trapping, transporting and, in general, manipulating the state of motion of cold atoms.