James Bateman

Near-field interferometry of a free-falling nanoparticle from a point-like source.

Matter-wave interferometry performed with massive objects elucidates their wave nature and thus tests the quantum superposition principle at large scales. Whereas standard quantum theory places no limit on particle size, alternative, yet untested theories--conceived to explain the apparent quantum to classical transition--forbid macroscopic superpositions. Here we propose an interferometer with a levitated, optically cooled and then free-falling silicon nanoparticle in the mass range of one million atomic mass units, delocalized over >150 nm. The scheme employs the near-field Talbot effect with a single standing-wave laser pulse as a phase grating. Our analysis, which accounts for all relevant sources of decoherence, indicates that this is a viable route towards macroscopic high-mass superpositions using available technology.

On the Existence of Low-Mass Dark Matter and its Direct Detection

Dark Matter (DM) is an elusive form of matter which has been postulated to explain astronomical observations through its gravitational effects on stars and galaxies, gravitational lensing of light around these, and through its imprint on the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). This indirect evidence implies that DM accounts for as much as 84.5% of all matter in our Universe, yet it has so far evaded all attempts at direct detection, leaving such confirmation and the consequent discovery of its nature as one of the biggest challenges in modern physics. Here we present a novel form of low-mass DM χ that would have been missed by all experiments so far. While its large interaction strength might at first seem unlikely, neither constraints from particle physics nor cosmological/astronomical observations are sufficient to rule out this type of DM, and it motivates our proposal for direct detection by optomechanics technology which should soon be within reach, namely, through the precise position measurement of a levitated mesoscopic particle which will be perturbed by elastic collisions with χ particles. We show that a recently proposed nanoparticle matter-wave interferometer, originally conceived for tests of the quantum superposition principle, is sensitive to these collisions, too.

Composite pulses for interferometry in a thermal cold atom cloud

Atom interferometric sensors and quantum information processors must maintain coherence while the evolving quantum wave function is split, transformed, and recombined, but suffer from experimental inhomogeneities and uncertainties in the speeds and paths of these operations. Several error-correction techniques have been proposed to isolate the variable of interest. Here we apply composite pulse methods to velocity-sensitive Raman state manipulation in a freely expanding thermal atom cloud. We compare several established pulse sequences, and follow the state evolution within them. The agreement between measurements and simple predictions shows the underlying coherence of the atom ensemble, and the inversion infidelity in a ?80?K atom cloud is halved. Composite pulse techniques, especially if tailored for atom interferometric applications, should allow greater interferometer areas, larger atomic samples, and longer interaction times, and hence improve the sensitivity of quantum technologies from inertial sensing and clocks to quantum information processors and tests of fundamental physics.

Hänsch-Couillaud locking of Mach-Zehnder interferometer for carrier removal from a phase-modulated optical spectrum

We describe and analyze the operation and stabilization of a Mach–Zehnder interferometer, which separates the carrier and the first-order sidebands of a phase-modulated laser field, and which is locked using the Hansch–Couillaud method. In addition to the necessary attenuation, our interferometer introduces, via total internal reflection, a significant polarization-dependent phase delay. We employ a general treatment to describe an interferometer with an object that affects the field along one path, and we examine how this phase delay affects the error signal. We discuss the requirements necessary to ensure the lock point remains unchanged when phase modulation is introduced, and we demonstrate and characterize this locking experimentally. Finally, we suggest an extension to this locking strategy using heterodyne detection.

Effects of Newtonian gravitational self-interaction in harmonically trapped quantum systems.

The Schrödinger–Newton equation has gained attention in the recent past as a nonlinear modification of the Schrödinger equation due to a gravitational self-interaction. Such a modification is expected from a fundamentally semi-classical theory of gravity and can, therefore, be considered a test case for the necessity of the quantisation of the gravitational field. Here we provide a thorough study of the effects of the Schrödinger–Newton equation for a micron-sized sphere trapped in a harmonic oscillator potential. We discuss both the effect on the energy eigenstates and the dynamical behaviour of squeezed states, covering the experimentally relevant parameter regimes.

Compact, high-pulse-energy, high-power, picosecond master oscillator power amplifier

We report a compact, stable, gain-switched-diode-seeded master oscillator power amplifier (MOPA), employing direct amplification via conventional Yb(3+)-doped fibers, to generate picosecond pulses with energy of 17.7 μJ and 97-W average output power (excluding amplified spontaneous emission) at 5.47-MHz repetition frequency in a diffraction-limited and single-polarization beam. A maximum peak power of 197 kW is demonstrated. Such a high-energy, high-power, MHz, picosecond MOPA is of great interest for high-throughput material processing. With 13.8-μJ pulse energy confined in the 0.87-nm 3-dB spectral bandwidth, this MOPA is also a promising source for nonlinear frequency conversion to generate high-energy pulses in other spectral regions. We have explored the pulse energy scaling until the stimulated Raman Scattering (SRS) becomes significant (i.e. spectral peak intensity exceeds 1% of that of the signal).

Voltage transfer function as an optical method to characterize electrical properties of liquid crystal devices

The voltage transfer function is a rapid and visually effective method to determine the electrical response of liquid crystal (LC) systems using optical measurements. This method relies on crosspolarized intensity measurements as a function of the frequency and amplitude of the voltage applied to the device. Coupled with a mathematical model of the device it can be used to determine the device time constants and electrical properties. We validate the method using photorefractive LC cells and determine the main time constants and the voltage dropped across the layers using a simple nonlinear filter model.

Light-activated modulation and coupling in integrated polymer–liquid crystal systems

We explore the transfer of an incident light pattern onto the liquid crystal (LC) bulk in a photorefractive cell through an integrated photoconducting layer that modulates the electric field applied to the device. The electrical properties and the strength of modulation are investigated as a function of the incident light intensity as well as the frequency and amplitude of the applied voltage, for two LCs with very different electrical conductivity. A simplified electrical model of the cell is proposed, demonstrating that the LC conductivity is a key factor determining the beam-coupling strength.

Stimulated Raman transitions via multiple atomic levels

We consider the stimulated Raman transition between two long-lived states via multiple intermediate states, such as between hyperfine ground states in the alkali-metal atoms. We present a concise treatment of the general, multilevel, off-resonant case, and we show how the lightshift emerges naturally in this approach. We illustrate our results by application to alkali-metal atoms and we make specific reference to cesium. We comment on some artifacts, due solely to the geometrical overlap of states, which are relevant to existing experiments.

Matterwave interferometric velocimetry of cold Rb atoms

We consider the matterwave interferometric measurement of atomic velocities, which forms a building block for all matterwave inertial measurements. A theoretical analysis, addressing both the laboratory and atomic frames and accounting for residual Doppler sensitivity in the beamsplitter and recombiner pulses, is followed by an experimental demonstration, with measurements of the velocity distribution within a 20 K cloud of rubidium atoms. Our experiments use Raman transitions between the long-lived ground hyperfine states, and allow quadrature measurements that yield the full complex interferometer signal and hence discriminate between positive and negative velocities. The technique is most suitable for measurement of colder samples.