Neutral Atom Imaging Using a Pulsed Electromagnetic Lens

This book describes the design, construction, and characterization of a newtype of aberration-corrected, neutral-atom lens. Atom beam control plays a crucialrole in many different fields, ranging from fundamental physics research and materialsscience to applied nanotechnology. Despite this, atom-optical elements like lenses andmirrors remain relatively underdeveloped compared to their counterparts in otheroptics fields. Although aberration correction is addressed quite comprehensively inphoton and electron lenses, no credible research efforts have yet produced the sametechnology for neutral atoms. It reports on progress towards a neutral atom imaging device that will be useful ina range of applications, including nanofabrication and surface microscopy. It presents a noveltechnique for improving refractive power and correcting chromatic aberration in atomlenses based on a fundamental paradigm shift from continuous, two-dimensionalfocusing to a pulsed, three-dimensional approach. Simulations of this system suggestthat it will pave the way towards the long-sought goal of true atom imaging onthe nanoscale. The book further describes the construction of a prototype lens, and shows that all of the technologicalrequirements for the proposed system are easily satisfied. Using metastable neon froma supersonic source,the prototype wascharacterized for three different focal lengthsand a diverse range of apertures. Despite some manufacturing imperfections,lower distortion and higher resolution than has been shown in any previoushexapole lens wasobserved. Comparison with simulations corroborates the underlying theory andencourages further refinement of the process.