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Adiabatic expansion cooling of antihydrogen

M. Ahmadi, B. X. R. Alves, Christopher Baker Orcid Logo, W. Bertsche Orcid Logo, A. Capra Orcid Logo, S. Cohen, C. Torkzaban, C. L. Cesar Orcid Logo, Michael Charlton, R. Collister, Stefan Eriksson Orcid Logo, A. Evans, N. Evetts, J. Fajans Orcid Logo, T. Friesen, M. C. Fujiwara, P. Granum Orcid Logo, J. S. Hangst, M. E. Hayden, D. Hodgkinson Orcid Logo, Aled Isaac Orcid Logo, M. A. Johnson Orcid Logo, S. A. Jones Orcid Logo, S. Jonsell Orcid Logo, N. Kalem Orcid Logo, Niels Madsen Orcid Logo, Daniel Maxwell Orcid Logo, J. T. K. McKenna Orcid Logo, S. Menary, T. Momose Orcid Logo, J. Munich, K. Olchanski, A. Olin Orcid Logo, P. Pusa, C. Ø. Rasmussen, F. Robicheaux Orcid Logo, R. L. Sacramento, M. Sameed Orcid Logo, E. Sarid, D. M. Silveira, C. So, G. Stutter, T. D. Tharp, R. I. Thompson, Dirk van der Werf Orcid Logo, J. S. Wurtele, (The ALPHA Collaboration)

Physical Review Research, Volume: 6, Issue: 3

Swansea University Authors: Christopher Baker Orcid Logo, Michael Charlton, Stefan Eriksson Orcid Logo, Aled Isaac Orcid Logo, Niels Madsen Orcid Logo, Daniel Maxwell Orcid Logo, Dirk van der Werf Orcid Logo

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Abstract

Magnetically trapped antihydrogen atoms can be cooled by expanding the volume of the trap in which they are confined. We report a proof-of-principle experiment in which antiatoms are deliberately released from expanded and static traps. Antiatoms escape at an average trap depth of 0.08 ± 0.01 K (sta...

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Published in: Physical Review Research
ISSN: 2643-1564
Published: American Physical Society (APS) 2024
Online Access: Check full text

URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa67727
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Abstract: Magnetically trapped antihydrogen atoms can be cooled by expanding the volume of the trap in which they are confined. We report a proof-of-principle experiment in which antiatoms are deliberately released from expanded and static traps. Antiatoms escape at an average trap depth of 0.08 ± 0.01 K (statistical errors only) from the expanded trap while they escape at average depths of 0.22 ± 0.01 and 0.17 ± 0.01 K from two different static traps. (We employ temperature-equivalent energy units.) Detailed simulations qualitatively agree with the escape times measured in the experiment and show a decrease of 38% (statistical error < 0.2%) in the mean energy of the population after the trap expansion without significantly increasing antiatom loss compared to typical static confinement protocols. This change is bracketed by the predictions of one-dimensional and three-dimensional semianalytic adiabatic expansion models. These experimental, simulational, and model results are consistent with obtaining an adiabatically cooled population of antihydrogen atoms that partially exchanged energy between axial and transverse degrees of freedom during the trap expansion. This result is important for future antihydrogen gravitational experiments which rely on adiabatic cooling, and it will enable antihydrogen cooling beyond the fundamental limits of laser cooling.
Item Description: Letter
Keywords: Antihydrogen, Adiabatic Cooling, Exotic Atoms, Neutral atom trapping, Magnetic traps
College: Faculty of Science and Engineering
Funders: EPSRC, Leverhulme Trust, The Royal Society
Issue: 3