A 2-dimensional detector with high spatial and temporal resolution for metastable rare gas atoms

We describe a detector for metastable rare gas atoms which allows the investigation of transverse atomic beam distributions on the single atom level with lateral dimensions of 1 m, which occur frequently in the field of atom optics. In contrast to existing detection techniques, the conversion step from the metastable atom to an electron is separated from the charge amplification to improve spatial resolution. The conversion is performed at a metal surface, which is followed by an electron-optical system imaging the electron distribution with a proper magnification onto a single electron detection unit. The spatial resolution that we achieve with this technique is on the order of 1 m, the temporal resolution on the order of 1 s. The application of the detector for atom interferometry is discussed. Received: 22 May 1996 / Revised version: 21 June 1996     

Atom number calibration in absorption imaging at very small atom numbers

Cold atom experiments often use images of the atom clouds as their exclusive source of experimental information. The most commonly used technique is absorption imaging, which provides accurate information about the shapes of the atom clouds, but requires care when seeking the absolute atom number for small atom samples. In this paper, we present an independent, absolute calibration of the atom numbers. We directly compare the atom number detected using dark-ground imaging to the one observed by fluorescence imaging of the same atoms in a magneto-optical trap. We normalise the signal using single-atom resolved fluorescence imaging. In order to be able to image the absorption of the very low atom numbers involved, we use diffractive dark-ground imaging as a novel, ultra-sensitive method of in situ imaging for untrapped atom clouds down to only 100 atoms. We demonstrate that the Doppler shift due to the acceleration of the atoms by the probe beam has to be taken into account when measuring the atom-number.     

Simultaneous Spatial and Temporal Focusing in Nonlinear Microscopy

Simultaneous spatial and temporal focusing (SSTF), when combined with nonlinear microscopy, can improve the axial excitation confinement of wide-field and line-scanning imaging. Because two-photon excited fluorescence depends inversely on the pulse width of the excitation beam, SSTF decreases the background excitation of the sample outside of the focal volume by broadening the pulse width everywhere but at the geometric focus of the objective lens. This review theoretically describes the beam propagation within the sample using Fresnel diffraction in the frequency domain, deriving an analytical expression for the pulse evolution. SSTF can scan the temporal focal plane axially by adjusting the GVD in the excitation beam path. We theoretically define the axial confinement for line-scanning SSTF imaging using a time-domain understanding and conclude that line-scanning SSTF is similar to the temporally-decorrelated multifocal multiphoton imaging technique. Recent experiments on the temporal focusing effect and its axial confinement, as well as the axial scanning of the temporal focus by tuning the GVD, are presented. We further discuss this technique for axial-scanning multiphoton fluorescence fiber probes without any moving parts at the distal end. The temporal focusing effect in SSTF essentially replaces the focusing of one spatial dimension in conventional wide-field and line-scanning imaging. Although the best axial confinement achieved by SSTF cannot surpass that of a regular point-scanning system, this trade-off between spatial and temporal focusing can provide significant advantages in applications such as high-speed imaging and remote axial scanning in an endoscopic fiber probe.     

Line width of an atom laser

We describe the measurement of the line width of an atom laser beam extracted from a Bose–Einstein condensate. Using a novel magnetic resonance imaging technique, we find that the energy width of the atom laser beam is Fourier-limited by the duration of the output-coupling process. Received: 25 July 2002 / Revised version: 28 October 2002 / Published online: 26 February 2003 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +41-1/633-1254, E-mail: koehl@iqe.phys.ethz.ch     

In-situ dual-port polarization contrast imaging of Faraday rotation in a high optical depth ultracold 87Rb atomic ensemble

We study the effects of high optical depth and density on the performance of a light-atom quantum interface. An in-situ imaging method, a dual-port polarization contrast technique, is presented. This technique is able to compensate for image distortions due to refraction. We propose our imaging method as a tool to characterize atomic ensembles for high capacity spatial multimode quantum memories. Ultracold dense inhomogeneous rubidium samples are imaged and we find a resonant optical depth as high as 680 on the D1 line. The measurements are compared with light-atom interaction models based on Maxwell-Bloch equations. We find that an independent atom assumption is insufficient to explain our data and present corrections due to resonant dipole-dipole interactions.     

Strong saturation absorption imaging of dense clouds of ultracold atoms

We report on a far above saturation absorption imaging technique to investigate the characteristics of dense packets of ultracold atoms. The transparency of the cloud is controlled by the incident light intensity as a result of the nonlinear response of the atoms to the probe beam. We detail our experimental procedure to calibrate the imaging system for reliable quantitative measurements and demonstrate the use of this technique to extract the profile and its spatial extent of an optically thick atomic cloud.     

激光冷却在原子束六极磁透镜技术中的应用

分析了由六极磁场构成了原子束磁透镜的原理及像差。在比较了热原子束和单色冷原子束的会聚效果后得出结论：影响它成像的主要因素是色差。应用激光冷却技术能使这一影响减小,从而使磁透镜在原子光学领域得到更广泛的应用。     

Spatial Dark Solitons in an Atom Laser Beam

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Light self-trapping in a large cloud of cold atoms

We show that, for a near-resonant propagating beam, a large cloud of cold Rb87 atoms acts as a saturable Kerr medium and produces self-trapping of light. By side fluorescence imaging, we monitor the transverse size of the beam and, depending on the sign of the laser detuning with respect to the atomic transition, we observe self-focusing or self-defocusing, with the waist remaining stationary for an appropriate choice of parameters. We analyze our observations by using numerical simulations based on a simple two-level atom model.     

Feshbach-resonance-induced atomic filamentation and quantum pair correlation in atom-laser-beam propagation

We study the propagation of an atom laser beam through a spatial region with a magnetic field tuned around a Feshbach resonance. Magnetic fields below the resonance produce an effective focusing Kerr medium that causes a modulational instability of the atomic beam. Under appropriate circumstances, this results in beam breakup and filamentation seeded by quasiparticle fluctuations and in the generation of correlated atomic pairs.     

Double-slit diffraction of terahertz wave generated by tilted-pulse-front pumping

We propose a spatial diffraction diagnostic method via inserting a millimeter-gap double slit into the collimated terahertz beam to monitor the minute variation of the terahertz beam in strong-field terahertz sources, which is difficult to be resolved in conventional terahertz imaging systems. To verify the method, we intentionally fabricate tiny variations of the terahertz beam through tuning the iris for the infrared pumping beam before the tilted-pulse-front pumping setups.The phenomena can be well explained by the theory based on the tilted-pulse-front technique and terahertz diffraction.     

Addressable, large-field second harmonic generation microscopy based on 2D acousto-optical deflector and spatial light modulator

We present an addressable, large-field second harmonic generation microscope by combining a 2D acousto-optical deflector with a spatial light modulator. The SLM shapes an incoming mode-locked, near-infrared Ti:Sapphire laser beam into a multifocus array, which can be rapidly scanned by changing the incident angle of the laser beam using a 2D acousto-optical deflector. Compared to the single-beam-scan technique, the multifocus array scan can increase the scanning rate and the field-of-view size with the multi-region imaging ability.     

Measurement of sensitivities for the thermal recording of laser beams

A simple technique for determining the energy sensitivities for the thermographic recording of laser beams is described. The principle behind this technique is that, if a laser beam with a known spatial distribution such as a Gaussian profile is used for imaging, the radius of the thermal image formed depends uniquely on the intensity of the impinging beam. Thus by measuring the radii of the images produced for different incident beam intensities the minimum intensity necessary (that is, the threshold) for thermographic imaging is found. The diameter of the laser beam can also be found from this measurement. A simple analysis based on the temperature distribution in the laser heated material shows that there is an inverse square root dependence on pulse duration or period of exposure for the energy fluence of the laser beam required, both for the threshold and the subsequent increase in the size of the recording. It has also been shown that except for low intensity, long duration exposure on very low conductivity materials, heat losses are not very significant.     

High-resolution imaging of inhomogeneities in superconducting tunnel junctions by scanning with a modulated electron beam

A two-dimensional image of spatial structures within a superconducting tunnel junction can be obtained by scanning the current-biased junction with an electron beam and detecting the voltage change. The resolution of this imaging technique is governed by the thermal-healing length which describes the spatial diffusion of the beam energy through the superconducting film. Due to the thermal skin efect this resolution can be improved remarkably by high-freqency modulation of the beam intensity and synchronous signal detection.     

Production of annular flat-topped vortex beams

A model of an annular flat-topped vortex beam based on multi-Gaussian superimposition is proposed.We experimentally produce this beam with a computer-generated hologram(CGH) displayed on a spatial light modulator(SLM).The power of the beam is concentrated on a single-ring structure and has an extremely strong radial intensity gradient.This beam facilitates various applications ranging from Sisyphus atom cooling to micro-particle trapping.     

Projection microscopy of photoionization processes in gases

We demonstrate a method combining laser ionization of molecules with projection technique and allowing observation of photoionization processes in gases with sub-focal spatial micro-resolution. A bunch of molecular ions created by the nonlinear photoionization of the imaging gas near a tip extends in a divergent electrostatic field producing a magnifying image on the detector. It can be used to observe the profile of the sharply-focused intense laser beam in a wide spectral range. In proof of principle experiment the water molecules are ionized in ~40-μm laser focal spot in the vicinity of the silver needle with a curvature radius 0.5?mm and the resultant ions are counted by a position-sensitive scheme. According to our estimations, ~1.5-μm spatial resolution has been reached. Using a sharp tip, the spatial resolution can be improved to the sub-micrometer scale and such approach can be applied for short wavelength beam diagnostics.     

Space-adjustable dark magneto-optical trap for efficient production of heteronuclear molecules

We present a simple, robust, space-adjustable dark magneto-optical trap(MOT) for the efficient production of heteronuclear molecules. Double-mixed beams made up of repumping beams and depumping beams propagate in nearly opposite directions in the dark MOT. This optical arrangement can easily adjust the spatial positions of two clouds by changing the power ratio of the two repumping beams, and ensure a good overlap, which is very necessary for the production of heteronuclear molecules. The imaging of cold atoms by camera and the collisioninduced loss rate obtained by recording the loading curve of the cold atoms show that we obtain a perfect overlap of atom clouds. The number of Rb Cs molecules with the double-mixed beams is improved by 70%, which is higher than the one with the single-mixed beam.     

In situ spatial mapping of Gouy phase slip for high-detail attosecond pump-probe measurements

Attosecond pump-probe experiments routinely utilize extreme ultraviolet (XUV) and IR fields, with relative phase being the variable parameter. However, the Gouy phase slip between the focused IR and XUV pulses inevitably leads to a certain amount of phase averaging and loss of accuracy. By using ion imaging, we establish a one-to-one mapping between the local phase slip and the spatial coordinates of the focal volume, thus performing in situ characterization of the Gouy phase of a complex beam and its role in ionization of He and Xe. We demonstrate that spatially discriminated ion imaging enhances the contrast of a phase-dependent XUV+IR ionization signal. We utilize our technique to unmask a weak ionization asymmetry, thus opening pathways for further high-precision attosecond studies.     

Structure formation in atom lithography using geometric collimation

Atom lithography uses standing wave light fields as arrays of lenses to focus neutral atom beams into line patterns on a substrate. Laser cooled atom beams are commonly used, but an atom beam source with a small opening placed at a large distance from a substrate creates atom beams which are locally geometrically collimated on the substrate. These beams have local offset angles with respect to the substrate. We show that this affects the height, width, shape, and position of the created structures. We find that simulated effects are partially obscured in experiments by substrate-dependent diffusion of atoms, while scattering and interference just above the substrate limit the quality of the standing wave lens. We find that in atom lithography without laser cooling the atom beam source geometry is imaged onto the substrate by the standing wave lens. We therefore propose using structured atom beam sources to image more complex patterns on subwavelength scales in a massively parallel way.     

Sheet-beam geometry for in vivo fluorescent x-ray computed tomography: proof-of-concept experiment in molecular imaging

We propose a fluorescent x-ray computed tomography method using an array of detectors with an incident sheet beam, aimed at providing molecular imaging with high sensitivity and good spatial resolution. In this study, we prove the feasibility of this concept and investigate its imaging properties, including spatial and contrast resolutions and quantitativeness, by imaging an acrylic phantom and a normal mouse brain using a preliminary imaging system with monochromatic synchrotron x rays.