Marc Bienert

Cavity cooling of a trapped atom using electromagnetically induced transparency

A cooling scheme for trapped atoms is proposed, which combines cavity-enhanced scattering and electromagnetically induced transparency. The cooling dynamics exploits a three-photon resonance, which combines laser and cavity excitations. It is shown that relatively fast ground-state cooling can be achieved in the Lamb–Dicke regime and for large cooperativity. Efficient ground-state cooling is found for parameters of ongoing experiments.

Wave Packets Can Factorize Numbers

We draw attention to various aspects of number theory emerging in the time evolution of elementary quantum systems with quadratic phases. Such model systems can be realized in actual experiments. Our analysis paves the way to a new, promising and effective method to factorize numbers.

Light scattering in an optomechanical cavity coupled to a single atom

We theoretically analyze the light scattering of an optomechanical cavity which strongly interacts with a single two-level system and couples simultaneously to a mechanical oscillator by radiation forces. The analysis is based on the assumptions that the system is driven at low intensity, and that the mechanical interaction is sufficiently weak, permitting a perturbative treatment. We find quantum interference in the scattering paths, which allows to suppress the Stokes-component of the scattered light. This effect can be exploited to reduce the motional energy of the mechanical oscillator.

Electromagnetically-induced-transparency control of single-atom motion in an optical cavity

We demonstrate cooling of the motion of a single neutral atom confined by a dipole trap inside a high-finesse optical resonator. Cooling of the vibrational motion results from EIT-like interference in an atomic Λ-type configuration, where one transition is strongly coupled to the cavity mode and the other is driven by an external control laser. Good qualitative agreement with the theoretical predictions is found for the explored parameter ranges. Further we demonstrate EIT-cooling of atoms in the dipole trap in free space, reaching the ground state of axial motion. By means of a direct comparison with the cooling inside the resonator, the role of the cavity becomes evident by an additional cooling resonance. These results pave the way towards a controlled interaction between atomic, photonic and mechanical degrees of freedom.

Extracting atoms on demand with lasers

We propose a scheme that allows us to coherently extract cold atoms from a reservoir in a deterministic way. The transfer is achieved by means of radiation pulses coupling two atomic states which are object to different trapping conditions. A particular realization is proposed, where one state has zero magnetic moment and is confined by a dipole trap, whereas the other state with nonvanishing magnetic moment is confined by a steep microtrap potential. We show that in this setup a predetermined number of atoms can be transferred from a reservoir, a Bose-Einstein condensate, into the collective quantum state of the steep trap with high efficiency in the parameter regime of present experiments.

Cooling the motion of a trapped atom with a cavity field

We theoretically analyze the cooling dynamics of an atom which is tightly trapped inside a high-finesse optical resonator. Cooling is achieved by suitably tailored scattering processes, in which the atomic dipole transition either scatters a cavity photon into the electromagnetic field external to the resonator, or performs a stimulated emission into the cavity mode, which then dissipates via the cavity mirrors. We identify the parameter regimes in which the atom center-of-mass motion can be cooled into the ground state of the external trap. We predict, in particular, that for high cooperativities interference effects mediated by the atomic transition may lead to higher efficiencies. The dynamics is compared with the cooling dynamics of a trapped atom inside a resonator studied in [Phys. Rev. Lett. 95, 143001, (2005)] where the atom, instead of the cavity, is driven by a laser field.

CHIRPED PULSES, GAUSS SUMS AND THE FACTORIZATION OF NUMBERS

We present two physical systems which make Gauss sums experimentally accessible. The probability amplitude for a two-photon transition in an appropriate ladder system driven by a chirped laser pulse is determined by a Gauss sum. The autocorrelation function of a quantum rotor is also of the form of a Gauss sum. These examples suggest rules for determining prime factor components on the basis of the properties of Gauss.

Optomechanical laser cooling with mechanical modulations

We theoretically study the laser cooling of cavity optomechanics when the mechanical resonance frequency and damping depend on time. In the regime of weak optomechanical coupling we extend the theory of laser cooling using an adiabatic approximation. We discuss the modifications of the cooling dynamics and compare it with numerical simulations in a wide range of modulation frequencies.

State reconstruction of the kicked rotor.

We propose two experimentally feasible methods based on atom interferometry to measure the quantum state of the kicked rotor.

Suppression of Rabi oscillations in hybrid optomechanical systems

In a hybrid optomechanical setup consisting of a two-level atom in a cavity with a pendular end-mirror, the interplay between the light fields radiation pressure on the mirror and the dipole interaction with the atom can lead to a blockade effect, which manifests itself in a suppression of Rabi oscillations in the atomic population. This effect is present when the system is in the single photon strong coupling regime and has an analogy in the photon blockade of optomechanics.