627 research outputs found
Simple analysis of off-axis solenoid fields using the scalar magnetostatic potential: application to a Zeeman-slower for cold atoms
In a region free of currents, magnetostatics can be described by the Laplace
equation of a scalar magnetic potential, and one can apply the same methods
commonly used in electrostatics. Here we show how to calculate the general
vector field inside a real (finite) solenoid, using only the magnitude of the
field along the symmetry axis. Our method does not require integration or
knowledge of the current distribution, and is presented through practical
examples, including a non-uniform finite solenoid used to produce cold atomic
beams via laser cooling. These examples allow educators to discuss the
non-trivial calculation of fields off-axis using concepts familiar to most
students, while offering the opportunity to introduce important advancements of
current modern research.Comment: 6 pages. Accepted in the American Journal of Physic
Capture Velocity for a Magneto-Optical Trap in a Broad Range of Light Intensity
In a recent paper, we have used the dark-spot Zeeman tuned slowing technique
[Phys. Rev. A 62, 013404-1, (2000)] to measure the capture velocity as a
function of laser intensity for a sodium magneto optical trap. Due to technical
limitation we explored only the low light intensity regime, from 0 to 27
mW/cm^2. Now we complement that work measuring the capture velocity in a
broader range of light intensities (from 0 to 400 mW/cm^2). New features,
observed in this range, are important to understant the escape velocity
behavior, which has been intensively used in the interpretation of cold
collisions. In particular, we show in this brief report that the capture
velocity has a maximum as function of the trap laser intensity, which would
imply a minimum in the trap loss rates.Comment: 2 pages, 2 figure
Bose-Einstein Condensation in a Harmonic Potential
We examine several features of Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in an
external harmonic potential well. In the thermodynamic limit, there is a phase
transition to a spatial Bose-Einstein condensed state for dimension D greater
than or equal to 2. The thermodynamic limit requires maintaining constant
average density by weakening the potential while increasing the particle number
N to infinity, while of course in real experiments the potential is fixed and N
stays finite. For such finite ideal harmonic systems we show that a BEC still
occurs, although without a true phase transition, below a certain
``pseudo-critical'' temperature, even for D=1. We study the momentum-space
condensate fraction and find that it vanishes as 1/N^(1/2) in any number of
dimensions in the thermodynamic limit. In D less than or equal to 2 the lack of
a momentum condensation is in accord with the Hohenberg theorem, but must be
reconciled with the existence of a spatial BEC in D=2. For finite systems we
derive the N-dependence of the spatial and momentum condensate fractions and
the transition temperatures, features that may be experimentally testable. We
show that the N-dependence of the 2D ideal-gas transition temperature for a
finite system cannot persist in the interacting case because it violates a
theorem due to Chester, Penrose, and Onsager.Comment: 34 pages, LaTeX, 6 Postscript figures, Submitted to Jour. Low Temp.
Phy
Magneto-optical Trapping of Cadmium
We report the laser-cooling and confinement of Cd atoms in a magneto-optical
trap, and characterize the loading process from the background Cd vapor. The
trapping laser drives the 1S0-1P1 transition at 229 nm in this two-electron
atom and also photoionizes atoms directly from the 1P1 state. This
photoionization overwhelms the other loss mechanisms and allows a direct
measurement of the photoionization cross section, which we measure to be
2(1)x10^(-16)cm^(2) from the 1P1 state. When combined with nearby laser-cooled
and trapped Cd^(+) ions, this apparatus could facilitate studies in ultracold
interactions between atoms and ions.Comment: 8 pages, 11 figure
Out-of-phase oscillation between superfluid and thermal components for a trapped Bose condensate under oscillatory excitation
The vortex nucleation and the emergence of quantum turbulence induced by
oscillating magnetic fields, introduced by Henn E A L, et al. 2009 (Phys. Rev.
A 79, 043619) and Henn E A L, et al. 2009 (Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 045301), left
a few open questions concerning the basic mechanisms causing those interesting
phenomena. Here, we report the experimental observation of the slosh dynamics
of a magnetically trapped Rb Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) under the
influence of a time-varying magnetic field. We observed a clear relative
displacement in between the condensed and the thermal fraction center-of-mass.
We have identified this relative counter move as an out-of-phase oscillation
mode, which is able to produce ripples on the condensed/thermal fractions
interface. The out-of-phase mode can be included as a possible mechanism
involved in the vortex nucleation and further evolution when excited by time
dependent magnetic fields.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures, 25 reference
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