Microwave control of cold alkali atoms collisions

France

Disciplines

Physics, Astronomy (100%)

Keywords

• Fano-Feshbach resonances,
• Matter wave interferometry,
• Bose-Einstein condensation

Abstract

At ultralow temperatures, the scattering of neutral atoms is described by a single scalar quantity the scattering length. Atomic gases of different scattering lengths show dramatically different physical behaviors. According to theoretical predictions, this scattering length can be modified by exposing the atoms to strong radiofrequency and microwave fields. It is the goal of this project to experimentally verify this prediction.