A radio frequency emitter design for the low-frequency regime in atomic experiments

Area of Science:

• Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics
• Quantum Control
• Experimental Physics

Background:

• Radio frequency (RF) control is crucial for manipulating cold atoms in experiments.
• Existing RF circuits face limitations due to geometric constraints and power delivery.
• Efficient impedance matching and high current delivery are essential for advanced cold atom techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a compact and efficient RF circuit for cold atom experiments.
• To overcome geometric constraints in metallic chambers using a unified RF network.
• To demonstrate improved performance in evaporative cooling and Landau-Zener protocols.

Main Methods:

• Designed a novel RF circuit based on a capacitive transformer network.
• Integrated broadband and narrowband RF networks into a unified configuration.
• Utilized a low-frequency coil (up to 30 MHz) as an inductor and power-sharing element.

Main Results:

• Achieved significant reduction in RF input power for evaporative cooling (14.7 dBW to -3.5 dBW).
• Enabled cooling of Bose-Fermi mixtures below 10 μK.
• Demonstrated efficient atom transfer (80% of rubidium atoms) in 1 ms using the Landau-Zener protocol with a Rabi frequency of ~9 kHz.

Conclusions:

• The presented RF circuit offers high current delivery and flexible impedance matching.
• The unified RF network design effectively overcomes geometric limitations in experimental setups.
• This technology enhances precision and efficiency in cold atom experiments, including quantum simulation and cooling.