Nonadiabatic transport of cold atoms in a magnetic quadrupole potential

Abstract

We experimentally demonstrated the transport of cold atoms in a magnetic quadrupole trap in the nonadiabatic regime on the order of the trap period. The trap potential velocity was controlled by varying the currents of the two pairs of anti-Helmholtz coils. We efficiently transported cold atoms with two velocity regimes. For example, with a potential velocity of 18 (28 cm/s), the final velocity of a cold atom cloud is 0.6±2.7 (58.6±1.5 cm/s). The trap motion with proper velocity could expel energetic atoms from the trap, resulting in a decline in temperature of high residual velocity atoms.