arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Thierry Lahaye.
A fast packet of cold atoms is coupled into a magnetic guide and subsequently slowed down by reflection on a magnetic potential barrier ('mirror') moving along the guide. A detailed characterization of the resulting decelerated packet is performed. We show also how this technique can be used to generate a continuous and intense flux of slow, magnetically guided atoms.
We investigate the collapse dynamics of a dipolar condensate of 52Cr atoms when the s-wave scattering length characterizing the contact interaction is reduced below a critical value. A complex dynamics, involving an anisotropic, d-wave symmetric explosion of the condensate, is observed. The atom number decreases abruptly during the collapse. We find good agreement between our experimental results and those of a numerical simulation of the three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation, including contact and dipolar interactions as well as three-body losses. The simulation indicates that the collapse induces the formation of two vortex rings with opposite circulations.
We report on the realization of a Chromium Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) with strong dipolar interaction. By using a Feshbach resonance, we reduce the usual isotropic contact interaction, such that the anisotropic magnetic dipole-dipole interaction between 52Cr atoms becomes comparable in strength. This induces a change of the aspect ratio of the cloud, and, for strong dipolar interaction, the inversion of ellipticity during expansion - the usual "smoking gun" evidence for BEC - can even be suppressed. These effects are accounted for by taking into account the dipolar interaction in the superfluid hydrodynamic equations governing the dynamics of the gas, in the same way as classical ferrofluids can be described by including dipolar terms in the classical hydrodynamic equations. Our results are a first step in the exploration of the unique properties of quantum ferrofluids.
We demonstrate transport and evaporative cooling of several atomic clouds in a chain of magnetic Ioffe-Pritchard traps moving at a low speed ($<1$~m/s). The trapping scheme relies on the use of a magnetic guide for transverse confinement and of magnets fixed on a conveyor belt for longitudinal trapping. This experiment introduces a new approach for parallelizing the production of Bose-Einstein condensates as well as for the realization of a continuous atom laser.
We report on the implementation of evaporative cooling of a magnetically guided beam by adsorption on a ceramic surface. We use a transverse magnetic field to shift locally the beam towards the surface, where atoms are selectively evaporated. With a 5~mm long ceramic piece, we gain a factor $1.5\pm0.2$ on the phase space density. Our results are consistent with a 100% efficiency of this evaporation process. The flexible implementation that we have demonstrated, combined with the very local action of the evaporation zone, makes this method particularly suited for the evaporative cooling of a beam.
We compare two distincts models of evaporative cooling of a magnetically guided atomic beam: a continuous one, consisting in approximating the atomic distribution function by a truncated equilibrium distribution, and a discrete-step one, in which the evaporation process is described in terms of successive steps consisting in a truncation of the distribution followed by rethermalization. Calculations are performed for the semi-linear potential relevant for experiments. We show that it is possible to map one model onto the other, allowing us to infer, for the discrete-step model, the rethermalization kinetics, which turns out to be strongly dependent upon the shape of the confining potential.
We report on our recent progress in the manipulation and cooling of a magnetically guided, high flux beam of $^{87}{\rm Rb}$ atoms. Typically $7\times 10^9$ atoms per second propagate in a magnetic guide providing a transverse gradient of 800 G/cm, with a temperature $\sim550$ $μ$K, at an initial velocity of 90 cm/s. The atoms are subsequently slowed down to $\sim 60$ cm/s using an upward slope. The relatively high collision rate (5 s$^{-1}$) allows us to start forced evaporative cooling of the beam, leading to a reduction of the beam temperature by a factor of ~4, and a ten-fold increase of the on-axis phase-space density.
We present a theoretical analysis of the evaporative cooling of a magnetically guided atomic beam by means of discrete radio-frequency antennas. First we derive the changes in flux and temperature, as well as in collision rate and phase-space density, for a single evaporation step. Next we show how the occurrence of collisions during the propagation between two successive antennas can be probed. Finally, we discuss the optimization of the evaporation ramp with several antennas to reach quantum degeneracy. We estimate the number of antennas required to increase the phase-space density by several orders of magnitude. We find that at least 30 antennas are needed to gain a factor $10^8$ in phase-space density.
This article is devoted to the study of two-dimensional Bose gases harmonically confined. We first summarize their equilibrium properties. For such a gas above the critical temperature, we also derive the frequencies and the damping of the collective oscillations and we investigate its expansion after releasing of the trap. The method is well suited to study the collisional effects taking place in the system and in particular to discuss the crossover between the hydrodynamic and the collisionless regimes. We establish the link between the relaxation times relevant for the damping of the collective oscillations and for the time-of-flight expansion. We also evaluate the collision rate and its relationship with the relaxation time.