Nano-Scale `Dark State' Optical Potentials for Cold Atoms

Abstract

We discuss generation of subwavelength optical barriers on the scale of tens of nanometers, as conservative optical potentials for cold atoms. These arise from non-adiabatic corrections to Born-Oppenheimer potentials from dressed `dark states' in atomic $Λ$-configurations. We illustrate the concepts with a double layer potential for atoms obtained from inserting an optical subwavelength barrier into a well generated by an off-resonant optical lattice, and discuss bound states of pairs of atoms interacting via magnetic dipolar interactions. The subwavelength optical barriers represent an optical `Kronig-Penney' potential. We present a detailed study of the bandstructure in optical `Kronig-Penney' potentials, including decoherence from spontaneous emission and atom loss to open `bright' channels.

13 pages, 9 figures, to appear in Physical Review Letters