Designing arbitrary one-dimensional potentials on an atom chip

Abstract

We use laser light shaped by a digital micro-mirror device to realize arbitrary optical dipole potentials for one-dimensional (1D) degenerate Bose gases of 87Rb trapped on an atom chip. Superposing optical and magnetic potentials combines the high flexibility of optical dipole traps with the advantages of magnetic trapping, such as effective evaporative cooling and the application of radio-frequency dressed state potentials. As applications, we present a 160 µm long box-like potential with a central tuneable barrier, a box-like potential with a sinusoidally modulated bottom and a linear confining potential. These potentials provide new tools to investigate the dynamics of 1D quantum systems and will allow us to address exciting questions in quantum thermodynamics and quantum simulations.