2002/08/16 by M. Hammes, D. Rychtarik, B. Engeser +4 · 2 citations
Chemistry · Physics and Astronomy · #Atomic and Subatomic Physics Research #Cold Atom Physics and Bose-Einstein Condensates #Spectroscopy and Laser Applications #physics.gen-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevlett.90.173001
published as Phys. Rev. Lett. 90, 173001 (2003)
arxiv created 2002/08/16 · openalex publication_date 2003/04/29 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/30
A dense gas of cesium atoms at the crossover to two dimensions is prepared in a highly anisotropic surface trap that is realized with two evanescent light waves. Temperatures as low as 100 nK are reached with 20,000 atoms at a phase-space density close to 0.1. The lowest quantum state in the tightly confined direction is populated by more than 60%. The system provides atoms at a mean distance from the surface as low as 1 microm, and offers intriguing prospects for future experiments on degenerate quantum gases in two dimensions.