Patterned Rydberg excitation and ionisation with a spatial light modulator

TL;DR

This paper presents a method to precisely excite atoms at programmable locations in a trap using a spatial light modulator, enabling controlled ionisation or Rydberg excitation without direct observation of the light field.

Contribution

The study introduces a technique to shape excitation laser light into arbitrary patterns and correct optical aberrations without in-chamber light field observation.

Findings

Successful excitation of atoms at designated locations.

Effective correction of optical aberrations.

Programmable control over atom excitation patterns.

Abstract

We demonstrate the ability to excite atoms at well-defined, programmable locations in a magneto-optical trap, either to the continuum (ionisation), or to a Rydberg state. To this end, excitation laser light is shaped into arbitrary intensity patterns with a spatial light modulator. These optical patterns are sensitive to aberrations of the phase of the light field, occuring while traversing the optical beamline. These aberrations are characterised and corrected without observing the actual light field in the vacuum chamber.