2013/11/03 by Yueyang Zhai, Peng Zhang, Zhai, Yueyang +7
Computer Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Atomic and Subatomic Physics Research #Cold Atom Physics and Bose-Einstein Condensates #FOS: Physical sciences #Quantum Gases (cond-mat.quant-gas) #Quantum Information and Cryptography #cond-mat.quant-gas
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1311.0441
6 pages,3 figures,accepted by PRA,2013
arxiv created 2013/11/03 · openalex publication_date 2013/11/03 · arxiv updated 2013/11/05 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
We have performed a principle-proof-experiment of a magneto-optical diffraction (MOD) technique that requires no energy level splitting by homogeneous magnetic field and a circularly polarized optical lattice, avoiding system errors in an interferometer based on the MOD. The principle for this new MOD is that asynchronized switching of quadrupole trap and Ioffe trap in a quadrupole-Ioffe-configuration trap can generate a residual magnetic force to drive a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) to move. We have observed asymmetric atomic diffraction resulting from the asymmetric distribution of the Bloch eigenstates involved in the diffraction process when the condensate is driven by such a force, and matter-wave self-imaging due to coherent population oscillation of the dominantly occupied Bloch eigenstates. We have classified the mechanisms that lead to symmetric or asymmetric diffraction, and found that our experiment presents a magnetic alternative to a moving optical lattice, with a great potential to achieve a very large momentum transfer (>110 ℏ k) to a BEC using well-developed magnetic trapping techniques.