Guiding neutral atoms on a chip

We demonstrate the guiding of neutral atoms by the magnetic fields due to microfabricated current-carrying wires on a chip. Atoms are guided along a magnetic field minimum parallel to and above the current-carrying wires. Two guide configurations are demonstrated: one using two wires with an externa...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inPhysical review letters Vol. 84; no. 6; p. 1124
Main Authors Dekker, NH, Lee, CS, Lorent, V, V, Thywissen, JH, Smith, SP, Drndic, M, Westervelt, RM, Prentiss, M
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 07.02.2000
Online AccessGet more information

Cover

More Information
Summary:We demonstrate the guiding of neutral atoms by the magnetic fields due to microfabricated current-carrying wires on a chip. Atoms are guided along a magnetic field minimum parallel to and above the current-carrying wires. Two guide configurations are demonstrated: one using two wires with an external magnetic field, and a second using four wires without an external field. These guide geometries can be extended to integrated atom optics circuits, including beam splitters.
ISSN:1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.84.1124