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An array of integrated atom–photon junctions

Nature Photonics volume 5, pages 35–38 (2011)Cite this article

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Abstract

Photonic chips that integrate optical elements on a single device can process vast amounts of information rapidly. A new branch of this technology involves coupling light to cold atoms or Bose–Einstein condensates, the quantum nature of which provides a basis for new information-processing methods. The use of optical waveguides gives the light a small cross-section, making coupling to atoms1,2 efficient. In this Letter, we present the first waveguide chip designed to address a Bose–Einstein condensate along a row of independent junctions, which are separated by only 10 µm and have large atom–photon coupling. We describe a fully integrated, scalable design, and demonstrate 11 junctions working as intended, using a low-density cold atom cloud with as little as one atom on average in any one junction. The device suggests new possibilities for engineering quantum states of matter and light on a microscopic scale.

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Figure 1: Schematic of the integrated-waveguide atom chip.
Figure 2: Absorption of light by atoms in the trench.
Figure 3: Zeeman-split absorption spectrum measures light polarization.
Figure 4: Comparison of performance for 11 junctions.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge valuable discussions with B. Darquié, the assistance of G. Lepert with fibre coupling, and the technical expertise of J. Dyne, S. Maine and V. Gerulis, without whom the apparatus could not have been constructed. We acknowledge UK support by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the Quantum Information Processing Interdisciplinary Research Collaboration (QIPIRC) and the Royal Society, and European Union support through Scalable Quantum Computing with Light and Atoms (SCALA) and Hybrid Information Processing (HIP).

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  1. M. Trupke

    Present address: Present address: Atominstitut der Österreichischen Universitäten, Stadionallee 2, 1020 Wien, Austria,

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Cold Matter, Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2BW, UK

    M. Kohnen, M. Succo, P. G. Petrov, R. A. Nyman, M. Trupke & E. A. Hinds

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  1. M. Kohnen
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Contributions

R.A.N., M.S., M.K. and P.G.P. constructed the apparatus, maintained the experiment, and took and analysed the data. M.T. and M.K. designed, specified and assembled the waveguide chip. E.A.H. was the principal investigator and also co-wrote the manuscript with R.A.N. All authors commented on the manuscript and discussed the construction, data, its analysis and interpretation.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to R. A. Nyman or E. A. Hinds.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Kohnen, M., Succo, M., Petrov, P. et al. An array of integrated atom–photon junctions. Nature Photon 5, 35–38 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2010.255

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