Circular Rydberg atoms trapped in an array of optical tweezers

Rydberg atoms are particularly well suited to quantum simulations, thanks to their strong interactions even at a few micron distance. Regular arrays of Rydberg atoms are now being used in many experimental setups. The simulation time is limited both by the few-100µs lifetime of the laser-accessible Rydberg levels and by the fact that Rydberg atoms are untrapped during the simulation.

Circular Rydberg atoms, the natural lifetime of which reaches several 10ms [1], offer the perspective to run quantum simulation over unprecedented timescales [2]. To benefit from these long times, however, makes laser-trapping of circular Rydberg atoms mandatory [3].

Here, I will present our latest experimental results regarding the laser-trapping of circular Rydberg atoms in a regular array of hollow optical tweezers. Laser-cooled Rubidium atoms are initially trapped in an array of gaussian-shape optical tweezers and are then promoted to the n=52 circular Rydberg levels, while being transferred into bottle optical beams, that trap the circular Rydberg atoms through a ponderomotive force. We observe and characterize the traps by transferring back the atoms to their ground state and imaging them in the initial optical tweezers. Our results open a new route for quantum technologies with Rydberg atoms, allowing one to exploit the unique properties of the circular levels.

[1] T. Cantat-Moltrecht et al, PRR 2, 022032 (R) (2020)
[2] T. L. Nguyen et al, PRX 8, 011032 (2018)
[3] C. Cortiñas et al, PRL 124, 1123201 (2020)