Hannover 2010 – scientific programme

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SYSA: Symposium Single Atoms

SYSA 2: Single Atoms II

SYSA 2.1: Invited Talk

Thursday, March 11, 2010, 14:00–14:30, A 320

Detecting single ultra cold atoms — •Jörg Schmiedmayer — Atominstitut, TU-Wien, Stadionallee 2, 1020 Vienna, Austria

Two different settings detecting single atoms by fluorescence are presented.

The first is a detector for trapped atoms [1], fully integrated on an atom chip, consisting of a tapered lensed single-mode fiber for precise delivery of excitation light and a multi mode fiber to collect the fluorescence, both mounted SU-8 holding structures on an atom chip. Single Rb atoms propagating freely in a magnetic guide are detected with an efficiency of 66% with a signal to noise ratio in excess of 100.

The second is a single atom camera that allows imaging of ultra cold quantum gases in expansion [2]. Atoms fall through a sheet of resonant excitation light and the emitted fluorescence photons are imaged onto an amplified CCD camera using a high numerical aperture optical system. We demonstrate single-atom detection for dilute atomic clouds with high efficiency where at the same time dense Bose-Einstein condensates can be imaged without saturation or distortion.

These detectors can be used to probe atom-atom correlations in ultra cold degenerate quantum many body systems.

Supported by EU: CHIMONO, the FWF: Z185-N16 and the FFG through the Austrian Nano Initiative: PLATON - NAP.

[1] M. Wilzbach, et al. Opt.Lett. 34, 259 (2009).

[2] R. Bücker, et al. NJP, 11, 103039 (2009).