Frankfurt 2006 – scientific programme

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Q: Quantenoptik und Photonik

Q 26: Fallen und Kühlung I

Q 26.8: Talk

Tuesday, March 14, 2006, 15:45–16:00, HII

Cooling trapped atoms in optical resonators — •Stefano Zippilli¹ and Giovanna Morigi² — ¹Abteilung für Quantenphysik, Universität Ulm, D-89069 Ulm, Germany — ²Departament de Fisica, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain

We investigate the dynamics of the center-of-mass motion of an atomic dipole in a cavity when the atom is harmonically trapped by an external potential and is driven by a laser. We derive a rate equation describing the quantum motional dynamics which is valid when the atom is trapped by a tight trap (Lamb-Dicke limit). This equation has broad validity and allows us to identify novel regimes where the motion can be efficiently cooled to the potential ground state. Our result shows that the motion is critically affected by quantum correlations induced by the mechanical coupling with the resonator, which may lead to selective suppression of certain heating transitions, thereby increasing the cooling efficiency

[1] S. Zippilli, G. Morigi, Phys. Rev. Lett. 95, 143001 (2005).