Düsseldorf 2007 – scientific programme
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A: Fachverband Atomphysik
A 13: Poster I - Ultra-cold plasmas and Rydberg systems
A 13.2: Poster
Tuesday, March 20, 2007, 16:30–18:30, Poster B
Controlling ultracold Rydberg atoms in the quantum regime — •Bernd Hezel1, Igor Lesanovsky2, and Peter Schmelcher1,3 — 1Physikalisches Institut, Universität Heidelberg, Philosophenweg 12, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany — 2Institut für Theoretische Physik, Universität Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria — 3Theoretische Chemie, Institut für Physikalische Chemie, Universität Heidelberg, INF 229, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
We discuss the quantum dynamics of ultracold Rydberg atoms in a magnetic Ioffe Pritchard trap. The derived Hamiltonian displays how tight traps introduce finite size effects into the coupling of the atom to the magnetic field. We solve the Schrödinger equation of the system within a given n-manifold. For sufficiently large Ioffe-fields the system of coupled Schrödinger equations decomposes into 2n2 decoupled equations that govern the center of mass motion. The analysis of the combined center of mass and electronic quantum states reveals that the spatial extension of the electronic Rydberg state can exceed the extension of the ultracold center of mass motion. Investigating the situation of tight center of mass confinement outlines the procedure to generate a low-dimensional ultracold Rydberg gas.