Experimental demonstration of a surface-electrode multipole ion trap

TL;DR

This paper presents the design and experimental validation of a surface-electrode multipole ion trap, demonstrating particle confinement, nonlinear dynamics, and potential applications like mass spectrometry.

Contribution

It introduces a novel surface-electrode multipole ion trap and provides experimental data validating its theoretical behavior and practical potential.

Findings

Confined microscopic sugar particles successfully.

Observed harmonic generation indicating nonlinear dynamics.

Measured charge-to-mass ratios of trapped particles.

Abstract

We report on the design and experimental characterization of a surface-electrode multipole ion trap. Individual microscopic sugar particles are confined in the trap. The trajectories of driven particle motion are compared with a theoretical model, both to verify qualitative predictions of the model, and to measure the charge-to-mass ratio of the confined particle. The generation of harmonics of the driving frequency is observed as a key signature of the nonlinear nature of the trap. We remark on possible applications of our traps, including to mass spectrometry.