We store and control ultra-cold atoms in a new type of trap using magnetic fields of vortices in a high temperature superconducting micro-structure. This is the first time ultra-cold atoms have been trapped in the field of magnetic flux quanta. We generate the attractive trapping potential for the atoms by combining the magnetic field of a superconductor in the remanent state with external homogeneous magnetic fields. We show the control of crucial atom trap characteristics such as an efficient intrinsic loading mechanism, spatial positioning of the trapped atoms and the vortex density in the superconductor. The measured trap characteristics are in good agreement with our numerical simulations.Atom-optical systems combined with well-established superconductor technology allows a new generation of fundamental experiments and applications, potentially enabling a coherent interface between neutral atoms and solid-state quantum devices. Important applications include the quantum state transfer and manipulation between atomic and solid-state systems which is of great interest for quantum information. For this goal the combination of atomic or molecular quantum systems with quantum states in superconducting solid-state devices has been proposed in various forms [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8].Recently, superconducting current-carrying chips have been used to implement micro-traps for neutral atoms [9, 10, 11] and advantages over conventional chips have been shown [12,13,14]. A prominent approach for quantum state manipulation in superconductors utilizes the magnetic flux quantum [15,16,17,18]. The flux quantum is of particular interest as an interface between atomic quantum systems and solid-state quantum devices because atoms with a magnetic dipole moment can be manipulated to high precision using magnetic fields. The pairing of atoms with quantized magnetic flux is a promising way of achieving a controlled interaction with possible applications in quantum technology and fundamental studies. In this article we report the trapping of ultra-cold atoms that relies on the controlled coupling between vortices in a superconductor and the magnetic dipole moment of 87 Rb atoms. This mechanism allows the design of novel trapping or guiding architectures for ultra-cold atoms. Such architectures could be additionally tailored by using combinations of vortices with magnetic fields induced by applied currents in superconducting micro-structures.
In this work, we demonstrate quantitative measurements of photodestruction rates of translationally cold, charged biomolecules. The long-term stable storage of the molecular ions in an ion trap under ultra-high vacuum conditions allows measurement of small rates and verification that rates are linear in photodestruction laser intensity. Measurements were performed on singly protonated molecules of the organic compound glycyrrhetinic acid (C30H46O4), dissociated by a continuous-wave UV laser (266 nm) using different intensities. The molecules were sympathetically cooled by simultaneously trapped laser-cooled barium ions to translational temperatures of below 150 mK. Destruction rates of less than 0.05 s−1 and a cross section of (1.1 ± 0.1) × 10−17 cm2 have been determined. An extension to tunable UV laser sources would permit high-resolution dissociation spectroscopic studies on a wide variety of cold complex molecules.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.