Recently we have been able to create multiple BECs using a tightly focussed 'dimple' laser beam. The image to the left shows the interference of these two condensates after releasing them from their traps. We are able to change the initial separation of the condensates and observe how the interference fringe spacing changes. (09/2014)

Mario Napolitano joined the group in June 2014 as a post-doc having previously completed his PhD in Morgan Mitchell's group at ICFO. Mario will bring his expertise in Faraday imaging to the QM&M experiment and help set up our optical lattices. (07/14)

We've been able to take 'Faraday pictures' of our BEC held in a crossed dipole trap. Instead of measuring the light absorbed by the cold atoms we detect the polarisation rotation of the imaging light. This method is much less destructive than absorption imaging and should allow us to take multiple images of the same cold cloud or BEC.

The picture is roughly 100 x 160 micrometers; the actual BEC is much smaller!

06/14

Mathieu de Goer from the department of physics of the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Cachan joined our experiment for a summer internship. He will assist in setting up the lattices and with the testing of the non-destructive imaging of ultracold clouds. (04/2014)

After a year and a half of hard work we finally have a BEC! Roughly 300k atoms in a hybrid trap geometry. (01/14)

Jacob Sherson has just been awarded a Lundbeck Foundation Fellowship valued at DKK 10 million. See more details on the official news announcement.   (11/2013)

Robert Heck joined the group in August 2013 as graduate student. Robert will be working on setting up the QM&M experiment. (08/13)

Wenzhou Zhang joined the group in March 2013. He will work on the new experiment as a postdoctoral researcher. Wenzhou previously worked at the Chinese Academy of Sciences on Bose-Fermi mixtures of ultracold atoms. (03/13)

On the 18th of February, the first MOT was realized in the new High Resolution Experiment. The system consists of a combined 2D and 3D MOT, and it will form the basis for creating BECs in the new experiment. (02/13)

Recently Mark obtained a Marie Curie Fellowship. Mark works as a postdoctoral researcher on setting up the QM&M experiment. Congratulations to Mark! (12/12)

In July Mark Bason joined our group as a postdoctoral researcher. In the coming years he will work on the QM&M experiment. (07/2012)

In May our group was joined by Romain Müller, who will set up the new HiRes experiment. Romain previously worked on cooling of bosonic cesium and fermionic lithium at Heidelberg University. We all look forward to the exciting start of a new experiment. (05/2012)

The prestigious Steno grant is awarded by the Free Research Council (Det Frie Forskningsråd) in the Nature and Universe (FNU) division. It is a four year grant and will allow Jacob Sherson to establish a new research activity in the field of cold atomic gases. (12/10)