arXiv · 2301.11095
Experimental challenges for high-mass matter-wave interference with nanoparticles
Abstract
We discuss recent advances towards matter-wave interference experiments with free beams of metallic and dielectric nanoparticles. They require a brilliant source, an efficient detection scheme and a coherent method to divide the de Broglie waves associated with these clusters: We describe an approach based on a magnetron sputtering source which ejects an intense cluster beam with a wide mass dispersion but a small velocity spread of 10%. The source is universal as it can be used with all conducting and many semiconducting or even insulating materials. Here we focus on metals and dielectrics with a low work function of the bulk and thus a low cluster ionization energy. This allows us to realize photoionization gratings as coherent matter-wave beam splitters and also to realize an efficient ionization detection scheme. These new methods are now combined in an upgraded Talbot-Lau interferometer with three 266 nm depletion gratings. We here describe the experimental boundary conditions and how to realize them in the lab. This next generation of near-field interferometers shall allow us to soon push the limits of matter-wave interference to masses up to 10 megadaltons.
Explore related subjects
Keep this discovery
Sebastian Pedalino, Bruno Ramírez Galindo, Tomas de Sousa, Yaakov Y. Fein, Philipp Geyer, Stefan Gerlich, Markus Arndt. 2023-01-26. Experimental challenges for high-mass matter-wave interference with nanoparticles. https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.11095
Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.