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Direct production of fermionic superfluids in a cavity-enhanced optical dipole trap

by Tabea Bühler, Timo Zwettler, Gaia Bolognini, Aurélien Fabre, Victor Helson, Giulia Del Pace, Jean-Philippe Brantut

Submission summary

Authors (as registered SciPost users): Tabea Bühler
Submission information
Preprint Link: https://arxiv.org/abs/2411.05694v1  (pdf)
Data repository: https://zenodo.org/records/14051599
Date submitted: 2024-11-11 18:27
Submitted by: Bühler, Tabea
Submitted to: SciPost Physics
Ontological classification
Academic field: Physics
Specialties:
  • Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics - Experiment
Approach: Experimental

Abstract

We present the production of quantum degenerate, superfluid gases of $^6$Li through direct evaporative cooling in a cavity-enhanced optical dipole trap. The entire evaporative cooling process is performed in a trap created by the TEM$_{00}$ mode of a Fabry-P\'erot cavity, simultaneously driven on several successive longitudinal modes. This leads to near-complete cancellation of the inherent lattice structure along the axial direction of the cavity, as evidenced by the observation of long-lived dipole oscillations of the atomic cloud. We demonstrate the production of molecular Bose-Einstein condensates upon adiabatic conversion of a unitary Fermi gas evaporatively cooled in this trap. The lifetime and heating in the cavity trap is similar to that of a running wave dipole trap. Our system enables the optical production of ultracold samples using a total trap-laser power below $1$ W, leveraging the benefits of optical resonators as dipole traps in quantum gas research while maintaining a simple resonator design and minimizing additional experimental complexity.

Author indications on fulfilling journal expectations

  • Provide a novel and synergetic link between different research areas.
  • Open a new pathway in an existing or a new research direction, with clear potential for multi-pronged follow-up work
  • Detail a groundbreaking theoretical/experimental/computational discovery
  • Present a breakthrough on a previously-identified and long-standing research stumbling block
Current status:
In refereeing

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