https://doi.org/10.1140/epjd/e2005-00011-3
Lithium atom interferometer using laser diffraction: description and experiments
Laboratoire Collisions Agrégats Réactivité, IRSAMC, Université Paul Sabatier and CNRS UMR 5589, 118 route de Narbonne, 31062 Toulouse Cedex, France
Corresponding author: a jacques.vigue@irsamc.ups-tlse.fr
Received:
25
October
2004
Published online:
1
February
2005
We have built and operated an atom interferometer of the
Mach-Zehnder type. The atomic wave is a supersonic beam of lithium
seeded in argon and the mirrors and beam-splitters for the atomic
wave are based on elastic Bragg diffraction on laser standing
waves at 
nm. We give here a detailed description of
our experimental set-up and of the procedures used to align its
components. We then present experimental signals, exhibiting
atomic interference effects with a very high visibility, up to
%. We describe a series of experiments testing the
sensitivity of the fringe visibility to the main alignment defects
and to the magnetic field gradient.
PACS: 39.20.+q – Atom interferometry techniques / 03.75.Dg – Atom and neutron interferometry / 32.80.Lg – Mechanical effects of light on atoms, molecules, and ions
© EDP Sciences, Società Italiana di Fisica, Springer-Verlag, 2005
