Simple Magneto-Optical and Magnetic Traps for Dysprosium

TL;DR

This paper presents a simple magneto-optical trap for dysprosium that efficiently captures and magnetically confines atoms directly from a thermal beam using a single diode laser, achieving low temperatures suitable for advanced experiments.

Contribution

It introduces a straightforward Dy MOT setup that combines optical and magnetic trapping with minimal complexity, enabling high atom numbers and low temperatures for dipolar interaction studies.

Findings

Achieved a MOT loading time of 26 ms.

Captured over 1.14×10^5 atoms with 85% in dark states.

Reached atom temperatures of 28 μK, below the Doppler limit.

Abstract

Dysprosium (Dy) is the most magnetic element on the periodic table, making it excellent for studying dipolar atom-atom interactions. We report on a simple Dy MOT that captures atoms directly from the thermal beam using a single diode-laser system to generate the light. Additionally, the atoms are magnetically confined by the quadrupole magnetic field that also facilitates the MOT. The MOT loading time is $\tau_\text{b} = 26~\text{ms}$. Atoms can decay to a dark state that is magnetically trapped. The time constant for loading into this magnetic trap is $\tau_\text{d} = 410~\text{ms}$. The total magnetically trapped population is $1.14\times10^{5}$ atoms, with $85\%$ residing in the dark states. The magnetically trapped atoms have a temperature of $28~\mu\text{K}$, significantly below the Doppler limit. This population fulfills the requirements for a range of future experiments.