Transport dynamics in a high-brightness magneto-optical-trap Li ion source

Laser-cooled gases offer an alternative to tip-based methods for generating high brightness ion beams for focused ion beam applications. These sources produce ions by photoionization of ultracold neutral atoms, where the narrow velocity distribution associated with microkelvin-level temperatures results in a very low emittance, high-brightness ion beam. In a magneto-optical-trap-based ion source, the brightness is ultimately limited by the transport of cold neutral atoms, which restricts the current that can be extracted from the ion-generating volume. We explore the dynamics of this transport in a ⁷Li magneto-optical trap ion source (MOTIS) by performing time-dependent measurements of the depletion and refilling of the ionization volume in a pulsed source. An analytic microscopic model for the transport is developed, and this model shows excellent agreement with the measured results.