Holographic site-resolved detection of a 2D array of ultracold atoms

在这个项目中，我们想展示一种新的全息技术，用于光学晶格中超冷原子的二维气体的位置分辨检测。探测方案是基于原子阵列散射的激光与参考激光束的相干叠加。记录的强度图案的傅立叶变换重建具有单站点分辨率的原子分布。我们估计，每个原子只需要散射大约150个光子，就可以以99%的概率检测到它的存在。由于这种低数量的散射光子，预期检测方法在没有额外冷却的情况下工作，并且它可以允许检测多个占据的晶格位点。此外，全息技术将更便宜，使用更简单的光学器件，并且使用这种技术的成像速度也将比量子气体显微镜更快。所有这些特性对于超冷原子领域的进展都很重要。

In this project, we want to demonstrate a novel holographic technique for the site-resolved detection of a 2D gas of ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. The detection scheme is based on the coherent superposition of laser light scattered by the atomic array with a reference laser beam. Fourier transformation of the recorded intensity pattern reconstructs the atomic distribution with single-site resolution. We estimate that only about 150 photons need to be scattered per atom to detect its presence with 99% probability. Because of this low number of scattered photons, the detection method is expected to work without additional cooling and it could allow for detecting multiply occupied lattice sites. In addition, the holographic technique would be less expensive, work with simpler optics, and imaging with this technology would also be faster than with a quantum-gas microscope. Together all these characteristics would be important for advances in the field of ultracold atoms.