Diffraction of a Bose-Einstein Condensate in the Time Domain

Yves Colombe (1) , Brigitte Mercier (1) , Hélène Perrin (2) , Vincent Lorent (1)

1 LPL - Laboratoire de Physique des Lasers
2 Condensat de Bose-Einstein

We have observed the diffraction of a Bose-Einstein condensate of rubidium atoms on a vibrating mirror potential. The matter wave packet bounces back at normal incidence on a blue-detuned evanescent light field after a 3.6 mm free fall. The mirror vibrates at a frequency of 500 kHz with an amplitude of 3.0 nm. The atomic carrier and sidebands are directly imaged during their ballistic expansion. The locations and the relative weights of the diffracted atomic wave packets are in very good agreement with the theoretical prediction of Carsten Henkel et al. [1].

Domaines: Physique Quantique [quant-ph]

Yves Colombe, Brigitte Mercier, Hélène Perrin, Vincent Lorent. Diffraction of a Bose-Einstein Condensate in the Time Domain. Physical Review A : Atomic, molecular, and optical physics [1990-2015], 2005, 72, pp.061601(R). ⟨10.1103/PhysRevA.72.061601⟩. ⟨hal-00007734v2⟩