Trapping and manipulating neutral atoms with electrostatic fields

Abstract

We report on experiments with cold thermal $^7$Li atoms confined in combined magnetic and electric potentials. A novel type of three-dimensional trap was formed by modulating a magnetic guide using electrostatic fields. We observed atoms trapped in a string of up to six individual such traps, a controlled transport of an atomic cloud over a distance of 400$μ$m, and a dynamic splitting of a single trap into a double well potential. Applications for quantum information processing are discussed.

4 pages, 4 figures