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Updated: Dec 2, 2025
Experimental Methods for Trapping Ions Using Microfabricated Surface Ion Traps
Published on: August 17, 2017
Confinement of an alkaline-earth element in a grating magneto-optical trap
A Sitaram1, P K Elgee1, G K Campbell1
1Joint Quantum Institute, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, USA.
Abstract:
We demonstrate a compact magneto-optical trap (MOT) of alkaline-earth atoms using a nanofabricated diffraction grating chip. A single input laser beam, resonant with the broad 1S0 → 1P1 transition of strontium, forms the MOT in combination with three diffracted beams from the grating chip and a magnetic field produced by permanent magnets. A differential pumping tube limits the effect of the heated, effusive source on the background pressure in the trapping region. The system has a total volume of around 2.4 l. With our setup, we have trapped up to 5 × 106 88Sr atoms at a temperature of ∼6 mK, and with a trap lifetime of ∼1 s. Our results will aid the effort to miniaturize quantum technologies based on alkaline-earth atoms.
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