1997 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Atomic wave controls of laser-cooled ultra cold atoms
| Project/Area Number |
08640516
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
物理学一般
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| Research Institution | Tokyo Institute of Polytechnics |
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Principal Investigator |
NAKAGAWA Ken'ichi Tokyo Institute of Polytechnics, Department of Photo-Optical Engineering, Associate Professor, 工学部・光工学科, 助教授 (90217670)
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| Project Period (FY) |
1996 – 1997
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| Keywords | Laser cooling / Atom optics / Atom Interferometry |
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| Research Abstract |
The purpose of this research is to investigate fundamental physical processes and experimental techniques for control of quantum-mechanical atomic motion or atomic wave using lasers. Experimentally, I have developed extended-cavity diode laser systems for laser cooling of Rb atoms and also a glass cell ultra-high vacuum system for magnet-optical trap of Rb atoms. Using these apparatus, I have realized the cooling and trapping of about 10^8 Rb atoms with a temperature of about several hundreds of micro Kelvin. Further investigation of cooling these atoms will enable to obtain ultra cold atoms at several micro Kelvin using a help of polarization-gradient cooling. Thus, it will experimentally possible to investigate the observation and control of quantum-mechanical atomic motion in a laser light potential. Theoretically, I have analyzed a fundamental physical process of ultra cold atoms in a periodic potential created by laser standing waves, which is called a recoil-induced resonance scattering, In such a configuration, the intensity or phase of the laser field transmitted to the cold atoms change according to the relative position of the atomic wavepacket to the periodic light potential. Thus, using this method, it is possible to monitor the atomic motion or quantum mechanical atomic state in the light potential in real-time. These theoretical analysis reasonably explains our previous experimental study about recoil-induced resonance using laser cooled Rb atoms. The control of quantum mechanical atomic motion or atomic wave has been also analyzed in the same atom-light configuration and it has been demonstrated by our preliminary experiment. Such a control of atomic motion or atomic wave will be useful for various atom optics experiments.
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