Cool things to do with lasers

Hughes, Ifan G; Pritchard, Matthew J

Abstract

There has been dramatic progress recently in atomic physics. It is now routine at hundreds of laboratories worldwide to cool samples of atoms to microkelvin temperatures through a process called laser cooling. Bizarre as it may sound, it is possible to use lasers (which are usually associated with cutting and heating) to slow atoms from the jumbo-jet speed of a room temperature gas to a snail's pace. At these low temperatures exciting new physics is observed, and atoms are treated as waves. An overview of the physics principles that underlie this technique is given, as well as a few examples of recent progress in the emergent fields of atom optics and manipulation of coherent matter waves.

Citation

Hughes, I. G., & Pritchard, M. J. (2007). Cool things to do with lasers. Physics Education, 42, 27-36. https://doi.org/10.1088/0031-9120/42/1/001

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: 2007
• Deposit Date: Jun 20, 2024
• Journal: Physics Education
• Print ISSN: 0031-9120
• Electronic ISSN: 1361-6552
• Publisher: IOP Publishing
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 42
• Pages: 27-36
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/0031-9120/42/1/001
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1537265