Related papers: Trapping and detection of single atoms using a sph…
We present an optical system designed to capture and observe a single neutral atom in an optical dipole trap, created by focussing a laser beam using a large numerical aperture N.A.=0.5 aspheric lens. We experimentally evaluate the…
We describe a simple experimental technique which allows us to store a small and deterministic number of neutral atoms in an optical dipole trap. The desired atom number is prepared in a magneto-optical trap overlapped with a single focused…
We report on the loading of atoms contained in a magneto-optic trap into multiple optical traps formed within the focused beam of a CO_{2} laser. We show that under certain circumstances it is possible to create a linear array of dipole…
Efficient collection of fluorescence from trapped ions is crucial for quantum optics and quantum computing applications, specifically, for qubit state detection and in generating single photons for ion-photon and remote ion entanglement. In…
We investigate the optical detection of single atoms held in a microscopic atom trap close to a surface. Laser light is guided by optical fibers or optical micro-structures via the atom to a photo-detector. Our results suggest that with…
Efficient collection and analysis of trapped ion qubit fluorescence is essential for robust qubit state detection in trapped ion quantum computing schemes. We discuss simple techniques of improving photon collection efficiency using high…
We trap a single cesium atom in a standing-wave optical dipole trap. Special experimental procedures, designed to work with single atoms, are used to measure the oscillation frequency and the atomic energy distribution in the dipole trap.…
We have generated multiple micron-sized optical dipole traps for neutral atoms using holographic techniques with a programmable liquid crystal spatial light modulator. The setup allows the storing of a single atom per trap, and the…
We derive a formula for the light field of a monochromatic plane wave that is truncated and reflected by a spherical mirror. Our formula is valid even for deep mirrors, where the aperture radius approaches the radius of curvature. We apply…
Detecting single atoms (qubits) is a key requirement for implementing quantum information processing on an atom chip. The detector should ideally be integrated on the chip. Here we present and compare different methods capable of detecting…
We report on the integration of small-scale optical components into silicon wafers for use in atom chips. We present an on-chip fibre-optic atom detection scheme that can probe clouds with small atom numbers. The fibres can also be used to…
Optical dipole-traps are used in various scientific fields, including classical optics, quantum optics and biophysics. Here, we propose and implement a dipole-trap for nanoparticles that is based on focusing from the full solid angle with a…
A three-dimensional magneto-optical trap (MOT), as an efficient method of producing cold atoms from room-temperature atomic vapor, has been widely used to develop atomic sensors. Various compact MOTs using a single laser beam have been…
We demonstrate the generation of an optical dipole wave suitable for the process of efficiently coupling single quanta of light and matter in free space. We employ a parabolic mirror for the conversion of a transverse beam mode to a focused…
Concave pyramids are created in the (100) surface of a silicon wafer by anisotropic etching in potassium hydroxide. High quality micro-mirrors are then formed by sputtering gold onto the smooth silicon (111) faces of the pyramids. These…
A fast packet of cold atoms is coupled into a magnetic guide and subsequently slowed down by reflection on a magnetic potential barrier ('mirror') moving along the guide. A detailed characterization of the resulting decelerated packet is…
We demonstrate the integration of micro-electro-mechanical-systems (MEMS) scanning mirrors as active elements for the local optical pumping of ultra-cold atoms in a magneto-optical trap. A pair of MEMS mirrors steer a focused resonant beam…
We describe the fabrication of an atom mirror by etching of a common hard drive, and we report the observation of specular retroreflection of 11 uk cesium atoms using this mirror. The atoms were trapped and cooled above the hard drive using…
We demonstrate a miniature, fiber-coupled optical tweezer to trap a single atom. The same fiber is used to trap a single atom and to read out its fluorescence. To obtain a low background level, the tweezer light is chopped, and we measure…
The subject of this review are atom traps based on optical dipole forces in laser fields, along with their unique features as storage devices at ultralow energies. The basic physics of the dipole interaction is discussed, and the…