Experimental Determination of the $D1$ Magic Wavelength for $^{40}$K
Abstract
Neutral-atom arrays offer a promising path for quantum simulation, yet the potential of fermionic K remains largely constrained by state-dependent light shifts that degrade cooling and detection fidelities. This problem can be resolved by working at a magic wavelength, where the differential light shift vanishes. We report the first experimental determination of the magic wavelength for the D1 transition in fermionic K at 1227.54(3) nm. Using in-trap loss spectroscopy in a wavelength-tunable optical tweezer, we map the differential AC Stark shift across a range of trapping powers and wavelengths. By converting these shifts to differential scalar polarizabilities, we find excellent agreement with relativistic all-order calculations. Benchmark measurements at 1064.49 nm further reveal the significant intensity-sampling systematics that plague standard trapping wavelengths, contrasting with the "mechanically clean" environment provided by the magic condition. Our results provide an important step toward high-fidelity in-trap D1 cooling, fluorescence imaging, and light-assisted loading, establishing a robust path toward scaling fermionic neutral-atom arrays for quantum information science.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2604.12448,
title = {Experimental Determination of the $D1$ Magic Wavelength for $^{40}$K},
author = {Guy Hay Kalifa and Dor Kopelevitch and Amir Stern and Yoav Sagi},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2604.12448},
year = {2026}
}
Comments
6 pages, 5 figures