Fast switching of alkali atom dispensers using laser-induced heating

We show that by using an intense laser source to locally heat an alkali atom dispenser, one can generate a high flux of atoms followed by fast recovery ( < 100 ms ) of the background pressure when the laser is extinguished. For repeated heating pulses a switch-on time for the atomic flux of 200 m...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Review of scientific instruments 2005-09, Vol.76 (9), p.093102-093102-3
Main Authors: Griffin, P. F., Weatherill, K. J., Adams, C. S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ALKALI METALS
ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
ATOMS
COOLING
HEAT TREATMENTS
HEATING
LASER RADIATION
LASERS
PULSES
RADIATION PRESSURE
RADIATION SOURCES
TRAPS
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Summary:We show that by using an intense laser source to locally heat an alkali atom dispenser, one can generate a high flux of atoms followed by fast recovery ( < 100 ms ) of the background pressure when the laser is extinguished. For repeated heating pulses a switch-on time for the atomic flux of 200 ms is readily attainable. This technique is suited to ultracold atom experiments using simple ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) chambers. Laser-induced heating provides a fast repetition of the experimental cycle, which, combined with low atom loss due to background gas collisions, is particularly useful for experiments involving far-off resonance optical traps, where sufficient laser power ( 0.5 – 4 W ) is readily available.
ISSN:0034-6748
1089-7623
DOI:10.1063/1.2038167