A Program in Ultralow-Temperature Atomic Physics

Massachusetts Institute Of Technology, Cambridge MA

Investigators

Abstract

This project in ultralow-temperature atomic physics is based on the exploitation of the phenomenon of Bose Einstein Condensation (BEC). Bose Einstein condensates realize a new class of gaseous quantum fluid, and one goal of the research is to study the properties of this new fluid. These properties include collective excitations with special emphasis on the hydrodynamic regime, coherence properties, condensates in rotating frames, and the behavior of condensates near Feshbach resonances. The scientific goals will be accompanied by advances in manipulating condensates. A flexible optical setup using beam scanning techniques will allow the realization of a great variety of trapping potentials. Finally, the research exploits the properties of condensates for application to atom optics.