Detection and dynamics of ultra-cold atoms in optical lattices

When atoms are cooled down to very low temperatures their thermal motion almost completely stops. The development of methods to trap and cool atoms be means of laser light and magnetic fields has provided tools to reach the lowest known temperatures in the Universe. These are within one billionth of a degree of absolute zero. At very cold temperatures the wave functions of the atoms start overlapping and they become indistinguishable. The bosonic atoms undergo the Bose-Einstein condensation, representing a new form of matter, predicted by Bose and Einstein almost a century ago. The Bose-Einstein condensates form a coherent source of atoms analogous to optical lasers; the resulting atom lasers are as different from ordinary atomic beams as optical lasers are from light bulbs. When the Bose-Einstein condensates are placed in periodic potential arrays formed by lasers, known as optical lattices, they behave like electrons in crystal lattices. However, unlike in crystal lattices, in optical lattices there are no lattice imperfections and the lattice height and the periodicity can be easily engineered. In optical lattices the atoms can behave like electrons in superconductors and could potentially be, e.g., the building block of a next generation quantum computer. The expected research outcomes are the means to observe, manipulate and control cold atoms by light, to further the basic understanding of quantum atomic gases and to influence the experimental progress with trapped atoms. The potential applications are in precision measurements, such as in the development of improved time measurements using atom clocks in satellite navigation.