Probing and manipulating cold atoms on an atom chip.

摘要

Microscopic scale atom optics can be realized by bringing cold atoms close to nanostructured material objects, this combination of atoms and microstructures has been called the atom chip. This dissertation focuses on two experiments: a study of the trap loss rate coefficients in a Two Species Mirror Magneto - Optical Trap (TSMMOT) and the implementation of an optical on-chip detector. We also discuss planar wire configurations that will be used in the future for magnetic trapping.; In the TSMMOT, Cs and 85,87Rb were confined in the proximity of a reflective surface. This was the first mixed species surface trap reported to our knowledge. We measured the trap loss rate coefficients and found an isotopic difference. The loss in Rb due to the presence of Cs was the highest measured for a mixed RbCs trap.; The on-chip optical detector consists of a pair of optical fibers bonded to the surface of the chip. One of the fibers is coupled to a probe laser, part of the output of this fiber is coupled into the second fiber, which takes the fight out of the vacuum chamber and into a detector. By measuring differences in the transmitted power we can detect atoms trapped in a mirror magneto-optical trap.