Related papers: Trapping molecules on chips
We present a method to measure the optical torque applied to particles of arbitrary shape held in an optical trap, inferred from the change of angular momentum of light induced by the particle. All torque components can be determined from a…
Controlling the transport, trapping, and filtering of nanoparticles is important for many applications. By virtue of their weak response to gravity and their thermal motion, various physical mechanisms can be exploited for such operations…
Simultaneous two-dimensional trapping of neutral dipolar molecules in low- and high-field seeking states is analyzed. A trapping potential of the order of 20 mK can be produced for molecules like ND3 with time-dependent electric fields. The…
Molecular magneto-optical traps (MOTs) typically capture orders of magnitude fewer particles than their atomic counterparts due in part to their significantly lower capture velocities. Here, we employ a Stochastic Schr\"odinger Equation…
We present experimental techniques and results related to the optimization and characterization of our nanofiber-based atom trap [Vetsch et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 203603 (2010)]. The atoms are confined in an optical lattice which is…
Arrays of individual atoms trapped in optical microtraps with micrometer-scale sizes have emerged as a fundamental, versatile, and powerful platform for quantum sciences and technologies. This platform enables the bottom-up engineering of…
We propose a novel physical realization of a quantum computer. The qubits are electric dipole moments of ultracold diatomic molecules, oriented along or against an external electric field. Individual molecules are held in a 1-D trap array,…
We have demonstrated a new, accessible and economical technique, dubbed photostop, for producing high densities of trappable molecules. Direct measurements are presented of NO molecules produced with a narrow velocity distribution centered…
Neutral atoms trapped by laser light are amongst the most promising candidates for storing and processing information in a quantum computer or simulator. The application certainly calls for a scalable and flexible scheme for addressing and…
Over the past decade, tremendous progress has been made to extend the tools of laser cooling and trapping to molecules. Those same tools have recently been applied to polyatomic molecules (molecules containing three or more atoms). In this…
We report on photo ionization of ultracold magnetically trapped Rb atoms on an atom chip. The atoms are trapped at 5 $\mu $K in a strongly anisotropic trap. Through a hole in the chip with a diameter of 150 $\mu $m two laser beams are…
Particles that can be trapped in optical tweezers range from tens of microns down to tens of nanometres in size. Interestingly, this size range includes large macromolecules. We show experimentally, in agreement with theoretical…
We demonstrate the long-term ($<$ 1 minute) trapping of Stark-decelerated OH radicals in their $X~^{2}\Pi _{3/2}~(\nu = 0,~J = 3/2,~M_{J} = 3/2,~f)$ state in a permanent magnetic trap. The trap environment was cryogenically cooled to a…
We present a robust, continuous molecular decelerator that employs high magnetic fields and few optical pumping steps. CaOH molecules are slowed, accumulating at low velocities in a range sufficient for loading both magnetic and…
Direct laser cooling of molecules has reached a phase space density exceeding 10$^{-6}$ in optical traps, but with rather small molecular numbers. To progress towards quantum degeneracy, a mechanism is needed that combines sub-Doppler…
Near-fields around nanophotonic structures and waveguides can be used to optically interface particles ranging from atoms and molecules to microscopic biological and synthetic particles. Due to the strong, non-linear dependence of the…
We analyze evanescent fields of laser written waveguides and show that they can be used to trap atoms close to the surface of an integrated optical atom chip. In contrast to subwavelength nanofibres it is generally not possible to create a…
The interaction between the electric dipole moment of a trapped molecular ion and the configuration of the confined Coulomb crystal couples the orientation of the molecule to its motion. We consider the practical feasibility of harnessing…
We have realized a high-resolution time-of-flight mass spectrometer combined with a magneto-optical trap. The spectrometer enables excellent optical access to the trapped atomic cloud using specifically devised acceleration and deflection…
Quantum information can be processed using large ensembles of ultracold and trapped neutral atoms, building naturally on the techniques developed for high-precision spectroscopy and metrology. This article reviews some of the most important…