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Updated: Aug 12, 2025

Preparing an Isotopically Pure 229Th Ion Beam for Studies of 229mTh
Published on: May 3, 2019
Jet-loaded cold atomic beam source for strontium
Minho Kwon1, Aaron Holman1, Quan Gan1
1Department of Physics, Columbia University, 538 West 120th Street, New York, New York 10027, USA.
Abstract:
We report on the design and characterization of a cold atom source for strontium (Sr) based on a two-dimensional magneto-optical trap (MOT) that is directly loaded from the atom jet of a dispenser. We characterize the atom flux of the source by measuring the loading rate of a three-dimensional MOT. We find loading rates of up to 108 atoms per second. The setup is compact, easy to construct, and has low power consumption. It addresses the longstanding challenge of reducing the complexity of cold beam sources for Sr, which is relevant for optical atomic clocks, quantum simulation, and computing devices based on ultracold Sr.
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