Echo spectroscopy and atom optics billiards

2 Echo spectroscopy and Atom Optics Billiards

We discuss a recently demonstrated type of microwave spectroscopy of trapped ultra-cold atoms known as " echo spectroscopy " [M.F. Andersen et. al., Phys. Rev. Lett., in press (2002)]. Echo spectroscopy can serve as an extremely sensitive experimental tool for investigating quantum dynamics of trapped atoms even when a large number of states are thermally populated. We show numerical results fo...

Observation of chaotic and regular dynamics in atom-optics billiards.

We report on experimental observations of chaotic and regular motion of ultracold atoms confined by a billiard-shaped optical dipole potential induced by a rapidly scanning laser beam. To investigate the dynamics of the atoms confined by such an "atom-optics" billiard we measure the decay of the number of trapped atoms through a hole on the boundary. A fast and purely exponential decay, the cle...

Quantum and Atom Optics

ATOM-OPTICS BILLIARDS Non-linear dynamics with cold atoms in optical traps

We present a new experimental system (the “atom-optics billiard”) and demonstrate chaotic and regular dynamics of cold, optically trapped atoms. We show that the softness of the walls and additional optical potentials can be used to manipulate the structure of phase space.

Atom Optics Using Microfabricated Structures

We present a novel method for fabricating precisely positioned small openings in thin silicon nitride membranes. Several optical elements for atoms have been constructed, including amplitude diffraction gratings and zone plates, and the results of experiments using these devices are presented. A method for creating a blazed diffraction grating is discussed. PACS: 35.10.-d, 42.25.-p Atom optics ...