Matter Optics with Intense Laser Light

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This is a project in matter optics, the manipulation of matter in ways analogous to the manipulation of light waves with optical elements. The novel focus of the proposal is on the manipulation of electron, ion, and molecule matter waves with intense laser light. The construction of a coherent beam splitter for electrons is the goal of the first experiment. The realization of this goal would constitute the first demonstration of the Kapitza-Dirac effect and would elegantly illustrate particle-wave duality. The second goal of the project is the demonstration of a coherent beam splitter in which the intense laser, not locked to resonance, would be used to diffract ions and molecules. Possibilities for using the ion interferometer to test for spin-orbit dependent Aharanov-Bohm phase shifts and for using molecular diffraction to study decoherence will be pursued if the demonstration is successful.