中国物理B ›› 2017, Vol. 26 ›› Issue (3): 33701-033701.doi: 10.1088/1674-1056/26/3/033701

• SPECIAL TOPIC—Soft matter and biological physics (Review) • 上一篇    下一篇

Direct loading of atoms from a macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap into a microchip trap

Jun Cheng(程俊), Jing-fang Zhang(张敬芳), Xin-ping Xu(许忻平), Hai-chao Zhang(张海潮), Yu-zhu Wang(王育竹)   

  1. 1 Key Laboratory for Quantum Optics, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201800, China;
    2 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • 收稿日期:2016-06-23 修回日期:2016-12-14 出版日期:2017-03-05 发布日期:2017-03-05
  • 通讯作者: Hai-chao Zhang, Yu-zhu Wang E-mail:zhanghc@siom.ac.cn;yzwang@mail.shcnc.ac.cn
  • 基金资助:

    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 11604348).

Direct loading of atoms from a macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap into a microchip trap

Jun Cheng(程俊)1,2, Jing-fang Zhang(张敬芳)1, Xin-ping Xu(许忻平)1, Hai-chao Zhang(张海潮)1, Yu-zhu Wang(王育竹)1   

  1. 1 Key Laboratory for Quantum Optics, Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201800, China;
    2 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
  • Received:2016-06-23 Revised:2016-12-14 Online:2017-03-05 Published:2017-03-05
  • Contact: Hai-chao Zhang, Yu-zhu Wang E-mail:zhanghc@siom.ac.cn;yzwang@mail.shcnc.ac.cn
  • Supported by:

    Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 11604348).

摘要:

We demonstrate the direct loading of cold atoms into a microchip 2-mm Z-trap, where the evaporative cooling can be performed efficiently, from a macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap with a high loading efficiency. The macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap potential is designed to be moveable by controlling the currents of the two pairs of anti-Helmholtz coils. The cold atoms are initially prepared in a standard six-beam magneto-optical trap and loaded into the macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap, and then transported to the atom chip surface by moving the macroscopic trap potential. By means of a three-dimensional absorption imaging system, we are able to optimize the position alignment of the atom cloud in the macroscopic trap and the microchip Z-shaped wire. Consequently, with a proper magnetic transfer scheme, we load the cold atoms into the microchip Z-trap directly and efficiently. The loading efficiency is measured to be about 50%. This approach can be used to generate appropriate ultracold atoms sources, for example, for a magnetically guided atom interferometer based on atom chip.

关键词: atom chip, three-dimensional absorption imaging, direct magnetic loading

Abstract:

We demonstrate the direct loading of cold atoms into a microchip 2-mm Z-trap, where the evaporative cooling can be performed efficiently, from a macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap with a high loading efficiency. The macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap potential is designed to be moveable by controlling the currents of the two pairs of anti-Helmholtz coils. The cold atoms are initially prepared in a standard six-beam magneto-optical trap and loaded into the macroscopic quadrupole magnetic trap, and then transported to the atom chip surface by moving the macroscopic trap potential. By means of a three-dimensional absorption imaging system, we are able to optimize the position alignment of the atom cloud in the macroscopic trap and the microchip Z-shaped wire. Consequently, with a proper magnetic transfer scheme, we load the cold atoms into the microchip Z-trap directly and efficiently. The loading efficiency is measured to be about 50%. This approach can be used to generate appropriate ultracold atoms sources, for example, for a magnetically guided atom interferometer based on atom chip.

Key words: atom chip, three-dimensional absorption imaging, direct magnetic loading

中图分类号:  (Atom traps and guides)

  • 37.10.Gh
37.10.Vz (Mechanical effects of light on atoms, molecules, and ions) 67.85.-d (Ultracold gases, trapped gases)