Welcome to the laboratory for ultracold atomic physics at IAMS.

Ultracold atoms are at the temperature range from microkelvin down to nanokelvin; these systems are simple and can be precisely controlled, where quantum physics in our textbooks can be manifested. We can use them as a platform to study fundamental quantum physics, simulate complicated models in condensed matter physics, and create new type of interaction with designed properties, leading to new systems which have no counterparts in material systems. One example is to “synthesize a magnetic field for neutral atoms" with a corresponding synthetic vector gauge potential. This is equivalent to generating a Lorentz force for moving atoms, simulating charged particles in real magnetic fields.

In our lab, we use two Raman beams with orbital angular momentum to couple and manipulate the spin states of the atoms, and generate synthetic vector potentials.