Speeding up the spatial adiabatic passage of matter waves in optical microtraps by optimal control

TL;DR

This paper explores how optimal control techniques can accelerate atomic transport in optical microtraps using spatial adiabatic passage, achieving faster transfer speeds within realistic experimental conditions.

Contribution

It introduces the application of optimal control methods to enhance the speed of spatial adiabatic passage in microtraps for both single atoms and Bose-Einstein condensates.

Findings

Optimal control pulses significantly speed up atomic transport.

Transport speeds approach physical limits set by experimental parameters.

Method applicable to current optical microtrap setups.

Abstract

We numerically investigate the performance of atomic transport in optical microtraps via the so called spatial adiabatic passage technique. Our analysis is carried out by means of optimal control methods, which enable us to determine suitable transport control pulses. We investigate the ultimate limits of the optimal control in speeding up the transport process in a triple well configuration for both a single atomic wave packet and a Bose-Einstein condensate within a regime of experimental parameters achievable with current optical technology.