Abstract
We observe effects of collective atomic motion in a one-dimensional optical lattice coupled to an optomechanical system. In this hybrid atom-optomechanical system, the lattice light generates a coupling between the lattice atoms as well as between atoms and a micromechanical membrane oscillator. For large atom numbers we observe an instability in the coupled system, resulting in large-amplitude atom-membrane oscillations. We show that this behavior can be explained by light-mediated collective atomic motion in the lattice, which arises for large atom numbers, small atom-light detunings, and asymmetric pumping of the lattice, in agreement with previous theoretical work. The model connects the optomechanical instability to a phase delay in the global atomic backaction onto the lattice light, which we observe in a direct measurement.
- Received 24 May 2017
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.120.073602
© 2018 American Physical Society
Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)
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Atoms Oscillate Collectively in Large Optical Lattice
Published 14 February 2018
By coupling atoms in an optical lattice to a thin elastic membrane, researchers have demonstrated a dynamic instability that is evidence of collective atomic motion.
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