NIST researchers have developed a miniature lens using metasurfaces that can trap and manipulate individual atoms. The metasurfaces, which are square glass wafers with millions of nanopillars, focus laser light to trap atoms within a vacuum. This new design eliminates the need for bulky external lenses and allows for precise control of individual atoms.
The process involves transforming plane waves of light into focused wavelets using the metasurfaces, which can be operated within a vacuum chamber. The researchers demonstrated trapping nine single rubidium atoms using this technique, with the potential to trap hundreds of atoms in the future. The metasurfaces also capture and focus the fluorescent light emitted by the atoms, enabling imaging of the trapped atoms.
This development could lead to more compact and efficient quantum devices, such as atomic clocks and quantum computers, by enabling precise control and manipulation of individual atoms on a chip-scale platform.
Source: https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2022/08/nist-researchers-develop-miniature-lens-trapping-atoms
Keywords: Metasurfaces, Atomic clocks, Quantum states
