Frankfurt 2006 – scientific programme

Parts | Days | Selection | Search | Downloads | Help

Q: Quantenoptik und Photonik

Q 31: Poster Fallen und Kühlung

Q 31.14: Poster

Tuesday, March 14, 2006, 16:30–18:30, Labsaal

UV light-induced atom desorption for large — •Oliver Topic, Thorsten Henninger, Carsten Klempt, Wolfgang Ertmer, and Jan Arlt — Institut fuer Quantenoptik, Universit*at Hannover, Welfengarten 1, 30167 Hannover

We show that light-induced atom desorption (LIAD) [1] can be used as a flexible atomic source for large ⁸⁷Rb and ⁴⁰K magneto-optical traps. The use of LIAD at short wavelengths allows for fast switching of the desired vapor pressure. This is interesting effect for experiments in a single vacuum chamber, because it permits long trapping and coherence times.
The wavelength dependence of the LIAD effect for both species was explored in a range from 253 nm to 630 nm in an uncoated quartz cell.
Only a few mW/cm² of near-UV light produce partial pressures that are high enough to saturate a magneto-optical trap at 3.5 × 10^{9 87}Rb atoms or 7 × 10^{7 40}K atoms. Loading rates as high as 1.2 × 10^{9 87}Rb atoms/s and 8 × 10^{7 40}K atoms/s were achieved without the use of a secondary atom source. After the desorption light is turned off, the pressure quickly decays back to equilibrium with a time constant as short as 200 µ s, allowing for long trapping lifetimes after the MOT loading phase.

[1] C. Klempt, T. van Zoest, T. Henninger, O. Topic, E. Rasel, W. Ertmer and J. Arlt cond-mat/0509241, accepted in PRA