Self-Bayesian aberration removal via constraints for ultracold atom microscopy.

Area of Science:

• Atomic, Molecular, and Optical (AMO) Physics
• Quantum Optics
• Microscopy

Background:

• High-resolution imaging of ultracold atoms, crucial for quantum gas microscopy, typically demands custom high numerical aperture (NA) optics.
• Existing high NA objectives often suffer from optical losses and light scattering, hindering quantum backaction-limited measurements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a cost-effective, hardware-independent methodology for digitally correcting aberrations in high-resolution microscopy of ultracold atoms.
• To demonstrate the recovery of nearly the full NA of a low-cost, aberrated objective lens.

Main Methods:

• Employing a low-cost, high NA aspheric lens for imaging 87Rb Bose-Einstein condensates.
• Utilizing density-density correlations measured with varying defocus to characterize even-order aberrations.
• Applying digital aberration correction to phase-contrast imaging data.

Main Results:

• Successful digital elimination of aberrations from a low-cost, high NA objective lens.
• Recovery of nearly the full NA, enabling high-resolution imaging of quantum objects.
• Demonstrated reduction of photon shot noise in density-density correlation measurements.

Conclusions:

• A simple, powerful digital aberration correction method enhances microscopy of quantum objects.
• This technique makes high-resolution imaging of ultracold atoms more accessible and economical.
• The digital correction is applicable to various imaging strategies, particularly dispersive techniques for weak measurements.