| EPSRC Reference: |
GR/N08728/01 |
| Title: |
COHERENT ATOM INTERFEROMETRY |
| Principal Investigator: |
Foot, Professor CJ |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Department: |
Oxford Physics |
| Organisation: |
University of Oxford |
| Scheme: |
Standard Research (Pre-FEC) |
| Starts: |
01 September 2000 |
Ends: |
30 June 2002 |
Value (£): |
95,675
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| No relevance to Underpinning Sectors |
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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The main aim of this proposal is to build a novel type of magnetic trap with a double-well potential and form a Bose-Einsteain condensate of rubidium atoms in it. Changing the height of the barrier between the wells will allow the strength of the coupling to be varied very controllably through the range from strongly interacting components to two completely separate condensates. Cutting a condensate into two has been demonstrated at MIT using the dipole force of a focused laser beam but this purely magnetic scheme eliminates problems with vibrations and is suitable for use in an actual interferometer. Interference fringes will first be observed by releasing the condensate(s) so that the self-energy causes an expansion leading to an overlap as the atoms fall under gravity.In the future r.f. or microwave output coupling will be used to give a quasi-continuous source emanating from each well. The coherence length of this source will be greater than the size of the original condensate.
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
| Summary |
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| Date Materialised |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.ox.ac.uk |