A two-state Raman coupler for coherent atom optics.

We present results on a Raman laser-system that resonantly drives a closed two-photon transition between two levels in different hyperfine ground states of (87)Rb. The coupler is based on a novel optical design for producing two phase-coherent optical beams to drive a Raman transition. Operated as an outcoupler, it produces an atom laser in a single internal atomic state, with the lower divergence and increased brightness typical of a Raman outcoupler. Due to the optical nature of the outcoupling, the two-state outcoupler is an ideal candidate for transferring photon correlations onto atom-laser beams. As our laser system couples just two hyperfine ground states, it has also been used as an internal state beamsplitter, taking the next major step towards free space Ramsey interferometry with an atom laser.

Ramsey interferometry with an atom laser.

We present results on a free-space atom interferometer operating on the first order magnetically insensitive |F = 1,mF = 0) --> |F = 2,mF = 0) ground state transition of Bose-condensed (87)Rb atoms. A pulsed atom laser is output-coupled from a Bose-Einstein condensate and propagates through a sequence of two internal state beam splitters, realized via coherent Raman transitions between the two interfering states. We observe Ramsey fringes with a visibility close to 100% and determine the current and the potentially achievable interferometric phase sensitivity. This system is well suited to testing recent proposals for generating and detecting squeezed atomic states.

Probing a Bose-Einstein condensate with an atom laser.

A pulsed atom laser derived from a Bose-Einstein condensate is used to probe a second target condensate. The target condensate scatters the incident atom laser pulse. From the spatial distribution of scattered atoms, one can infer important properties of the target condensate and its interaction with the probe pulse. As an example, we measure the s-wave scattering length that, in low energy collisions, describes the interaction between the |F = 1,m(F) = -1) and |F = 2,m(F) = 0) hyperfine ground states in (87)Rb.

Nonadiabatic electron dynamics in the exit channel of Na-molecule optical collisions.

We study optical collisions of Na atoms with N(2), CO, C(2)H(2), and CO(2) molecules in a crossed-beam experiment. Excited electronic states of the collision complex are selectively populated during the collision. We measure the relative population of the Na(3p) fine-structure levels after the collision and observe in this way the nonadiabatic transitions occuring in the final phase of the collision process. For the NaCO, NaC(2)H(2), and NaCO(2) systems new ab initio potential surfaces were generated. The theoretical analysis of the nonadiabatic electron dynamics on the excited potential surfaces is made within the classical-path formalism. The results are in good qualitative agreement with the experimental data and provide insight into the nonadiabatic mechanisms prevailing during the evolution in the upper 3p manifold. The differences between the different collisional systems are related to the presence and system-specific locations of conical intersections and avoided crossing seams in the excited potential surfaces.

85Rb tunable-interaction Bose-Einstein condensate machine.

We describe our experimental setup for creating stable Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) of (85)Rb with tunable interparticle interactions. We use sympathetic cooling with (87)Rb in two stages, initially in a tight Ioffe-Pritchard magnetic trap and subsequently in a weak, large-volume, crossed optical dipole trap, using the 155 G Feshbach resonance to manipulate the elastic and inelastic scattering properties of the (85)Rb atoms. Typical (85)Rb condensates contain 4 x 10(4) atoms with a scattering length of a=+200a(0). Many aspects of the design presented here could be adapted to other dual-species BEC machines, including those involving degenerate Fermi-Bose mixtures. Our minimalist apparatus is well suited to experiments on dual-species and spinor Rb condensates, and has several simplifications over the (85)Rb BEC machine at JILA, which we discuss at the end of this article.

Achieving peak brightness in an atom laser.

In this Letter we present experimental results and a simple analytic theory on the first continuous (long pulse) Raman atom laser. We analyze the flux and brightness of a generic two state atom laser with an analytic model that shows excellent agreement with our experiments. We show that, for the same source size, the brightness achievable with a Raman atom laser is at least 3 orders of magnitude greater than achievable in any other demonstrated continuously outcoupled atom laser.

Control of atomic collisions by laser polarization.

Atomic collision pairs in a light field form a microscopic interferometer. The light acts as the beam splitter and controls at the same time the amplitudes and phases of the interfering waves. We demonstrate the complete tunability using linear and elliptic polarization.

Collision photography: polarization imaging of atom-molecule collisions.

We report differential scattering experiments on the laser excitation of Na + M collision pairs with M = N(2), CO, C(2)H(2), and CO(2). The collision event is probed by the laser polarization revealing geometric and electronic properties of the collision pair. The experimental data are compared to the results of a Monte Carlo trajectory simulation using ab initio quantum chemical data.

Nonadiabatic transitions in the exit channel of atom-molecule collisions: fine-structure branching in Na+N2.

We study Na+N(2) collisions by laser excitation of the collision complex in a differential scattering experiment. The measured relative population of the Na(3p) fine-structure levels reflects the nonadiabatic transitions occurring in the exit channel of the collision. Theoretical results obtained with a classical-path formalism and accurate quantum chemical data for NaN(2) are found to be in good agreement. The presence of a conical intersection for the T-shaped geometry has a profound influence on the observed fine-structure branching.