179 research outputs found
Atom focusing by far-detuned and resonant standing wave fields: Thin lens regime
The focusing of atoms interacting with both far-detuned and resonant standing
wave fields in the thin lens regime is considered. The thin lens approximation
is discussed quantitatively from a quantum perspective. Exact quantum
expressions for the Fourier components of the density (that include all
spherical aberration) are used to study the focusing numerically. The following
lens parameters and density profiles are calculated as functions of the pulsed
field area : the position of the focal plane, peak atomic density,
atomic density pattern at the focus, focal spot size, depth of focus, and
background density. The lens parameters are compared to asymptotic, analytical
results derived from a scalar diffraction theory for which spherical aberration
is small but non-negligible (). Within the diffraction theory
analytical expressions show that the focused atoms in the far detuned case have
an approximately constant background density
while the peak density behaves as , the focal distance or
time as , the focal spot size as
, and the depth of focus as .
Focusing by the resonant standing wave field leads to a new effect, a Rabi-
like oscillation of the atom density. For the far-detuned lens, chromatic
aberration is studied with the exact Fourier results. Similarly, the
degradation of the focus that results from angular divergence in beams or
thermal velocity distributions in traps is studied quantitatively with the
exact Fourier method and understood analytically using the asymptotic results.
Overall, we show that strong thin lens focusing is possible with modest laser
powers and with currently achievable atomic beam characteristics.Comment: 21 pages, 11 figure
Blue laser cooling transitions in Tm I
We have studied possible candidates for laser cooling transitions in
Tm in the spectral region 410 -- 420 nm. By means of saturation
absorption spectroscopy we have measured the hyperfine structure and rates of
two nearly closed cycling transitions from the ground state
to upper states
at
410.6 nm and
at
420.4 nm and evaluated the life times of the excited levels as 15.9(8) ns and
48(6) ns respectively. Decay rates from these levels to neighboring
opposite-parity levels are evaluated by means of Hartree-Fock calculations. We
conclude, that the strong transition at 410.6 nm has an optical leak rate of
less then and can be used for efficient laser cooling of
Tm from a thermal atomic beam. The hyperfine structure of two other
even-parity levels which can be excited from the ground state at 409.5 nm and
418.9 nm is also measured by the same technique. In addition we give a
calculated value of s for the rate of magnetic-dipole transition
at 1.14 m between the fine structure levels
of the ground state which can be
considered as a candidate for applications in atomic clocks.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figure
Relocating Underwater Features Autonomously Using Sonar-Based SLAM
This paper describes a system for reacquiring features of interest in a shallow-water ocean environment, using autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) equipped with low-cost sonar and navigation sensors. In performing mine countermeasures, it is critical to enable AUVs to navigate accurately to previously mapped objects of interest in the water column or on the seabed, for further assessment or remediation. An important aspect of the overall system design is to keep the size and cost of the reacquisition vehicle as low as possible, as it may potentially be destroyed in the reacquisition mission. This low-cost requirement prevents the use of sophisticated AUV navigation sensors, such as a Doppler velocity log (DVL) or an inertial navigation system (INS). Our system instead uses the Proviewer 900-kHz imaging sonar from Blueview Technologies, which produces forward-looking sonar (FLS) images at ranges up to 40 m at approximately 4 Hz. In large volumes, it is hoped that this sensor can be manufactured at low cost. Our approach uses a novel simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) algorithm that detects and tracks features in the FLS images to renavigate to a previously mapped target. This feature-based navigation (FBN) system incorporates a number of recent advances in pose graph optimization algorithms for SLAM. The system has undergone extensive field testing over a period of more than four years, demonstrating the potential for the use of this new approach for feature reacquisition. In this report, we review the methodologies and components of the FBN system, describe the system's technological features, review the performance of the system in a series of extensive in-water field tests, and highlight issues for future research.QC 20130822</p
Doppler-free frequency modulation spectroscopy of atomic erbium in a hollow cathode discharge cell
The erbium atomic system is a promising candidate for an atomic Bose-Einstein
condensate of atoms with a non-vanishing orbital angular momentum ()
of the electronic ground state. In this paper we report on the frequency
stabilization of a blue external cavity diode laser system on the 400.91
laser cooling transition of atomic erbium. Doppler-free saturation spectroscopy
is applied within a hollow cathode discharge tube to the corresponding
electronic transition of several of the erbium isotopes. Using the technique of
frequency modulation spectroscopy, a zero-crossing error signal is produced to
lock the diode laser frequency on the atomic erbium resonance. The latter is
taken as a reference laser to which a second main laser system, used for laser
cooling of atomic erbium, is frequency stabilized
Quasifree kaon-photoproduction from nuclei in a relativistic approach
We compute the recoil polarization of the lambda-hyperon and the photon
asymmetry for the quasifree photoproduction of kaons in a relativistic
impulse-approximation approach. Our motivation for studying polarization
observables is threefold. First, polarization observables are more effective
discriminators of subtle dynamics than the unpolarized cross section. Second,
earlier nonrelativistic calculations suggest an almost complete insensitivity
of polarization observables to distortions effects. Finally, this insensitivity
entails an enormous simplification in the theoretical treatment. Indeed, by
introducing the notion of a ``bound-nucleon propagator'' we exploit Feynman's
trace techniques to develop closed-form, analytic expressions for all
photoproduction observables. Moreover, our results indicate that polarization
observables are also insensitive to relativistic effects and to the nuclear
target. Yet, they are sensitive to the model parameters, making them ideal
tools for the study of modifications to the elementary amplitude --- such as in
the production, propagation, and decay of nucleon resonances --- in the nuclear
medium.Comment: 15 pages and 6 figures - submitted to PR
Continuous loading of a magnetic trap
We have realized a scheme for continuous loading of a magnetic trap (MT).
^{52}Cr atoms are continuously captured and cooled in a magneto-optical trap
(MOT). Optical pumping to a metastable state decouples atoms from the cooling
light. Due to their high magnetic moment (6 Bohr magnetons), low-field seeking
metastable atoms are trapped in the magnetic quadrupole field provided by the
MOT. Limited by inelastic collisions between atoms in the MOT and in the MT, we
load 10^8 metastable atoms at a rate of 10^8 atoms/s below 100 microkelvin into
the MT. After loading we can perform optical repumping to realize a MT of
ground state chromium atoms.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, version 2, modified references, included
additional detailed information, minor changes in figure 3 and in tex
Broadband reduction of quantum radiation pressure noise via squeezed light injection
The Heisenberg uncertainty principle states that the position of an object cannot be known with infinite precision, as the momentum of the object would then be totally uncertain. This momentum uncertainty then leads to position uncertainty in future measurements. When continuously measuring the position of an object, this quantum effect, known as back-action, limits the achievable precision1,2. In audio-band, interferometer-type gravitational-wave detectors, this back-action effect manifests as quantum radiation pressure noise (QRPN) and will ultimately (but does not yet) limit sensitivity3. Here, we present the use of a quantum engineered state of light to directly manipulate this quantum back-action in a system where it dominates the sensitivity in the 10â50 kHz range. We observe a reduction of 1.2 dB in the quantum back-action noise. This experiment is a crucial step in realizing QRPN reduction for future interferometric gravitational-wave detectors and improving their sensitivity
Optimized loading of an optical dipole trap for the production of Chromium BECs
We report on a strategy to maximize the number of chromium atoms transferred
from a magneto-optical trap into an optical trap through accumulation in
metastable states via strong optical pumping. We analyse how the number of
atoms in a chromium Bose Einstein condensate can be raised by a proper handling
of the metastable state populations. Four laser diodes have been implemented to
address the four levels that are populated during the MOT phase. The individual
importance of each state is specified. To stabilize two of our laser diode, we
have developed a simple ultrastable passive reference cavity whose long term
stability is better than 1 MHz
Squeezing of Atoms in a Pulsed Optical Lattice
We study the process of squeezing of an ensemble of cold atoms in a pulsed
optical lattice. The problem is treated both classically and
quantum-mechanically under various thermal conditions. We show that a dramatic
compression of the atomic density near the minima of the optical potential can
be achieved with a proper pulsing of the lattice. Several strategies leading to
the enhanced atomic squeezing are suggested, compared and optimized.Comment: Latex, 9 pages, 10 figures, submitted to PR
- âŠ