Ultracold atom interferometry in space
Abstract
Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) in free fall constitute a promising source for space-borne matter-wave interferometry. Indeed, BECs enjoy a slowly expanding wave function, display a large spatial coherence and can be engineered and probed by optical techniques. On a sounding rocket, we explore matter-wave fringes of multiple spinor components of a BEC released in free fall employing light-pulses to drive Bragg processes and induce phase imprinting. The prevailing microgravity played a crucial role in the observation of these interferences which not only reveal the spatial coherence of the condensates but also allow us to measure differential forces. Our work establishes matter-wave interferometry in space with future applications in fundamental physics, navigation and Earth observation.
Cite
@article{arxiv.2101.00972,
title = {Ultracold atom interferometry in space},
author = {Maike D. Lachmann and Holger Ahlers and Dennis Becker and Aline N. Dinkelaker and Jens Grosse and Ortwin Hellmig and Hauke Müntinga and Vladimir Schkolnik and Stephan T. Seidel and Thijs Wendrich and André Wenzlawski and Benjamin Weps and Naceur Gaaloul and Daniel Lüdtke and Claus Braxmaier and Wolfgang Ertmer and Markus Krutzik and Claus Lämmerzahl and Achim Peters and Wolfgang P. Schleich and Klaus Sengstock and Andreas Wicht and Patrick Windpassinger and Ernst M. Rasel},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2101.00972},
year = {2021}
}
Comments
7 pages, 3 figures