Scalable Magneto-Optical Trap and Gravimeter

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(a) Side-view schematic of dual-MOT. (b) Mounted mirrors. (c) MOT mirror. (d) Incident laser beam. (e) Passing through laser beam after the 1^st mirror. (f) Passing-through laser beam after the 2^nd mirror.

Invention Summary:

Cold-atom-sensors such as atomic gravimeters have been used in geological surveys and navigation. The complexities involved in their design often limit the application scope of such sensors and the ability to support compact designs. For instance, the simultaneous measurement of the vertical absolute gravity value and gravity gradient using atomic gravimeters is still challenging due to the complicated apparatus.

Rutgers researcher, Dr. Wu and his team have developed a single-beam three-dimensional (3D) magneto-optical trap (MOT) based on back-to-back pyramidal and conical mirrors, capable of supporting the design of compact and scalable atomic gravimeters. Unlike classical MOT using three orthogonal pairs of counter-propagating laser beams, this configuration comprises a single incident laser beam, providing rich access to the MOT and producing multiple MOTs by stacking back-to-back mirrors. Back-to-back mirrors preserve a collimated pass-through laser beam. This feature will allow the creation of two MOTs using a single laser beam to illuminate two identical sets of spatially separated back-to-back mirrors, enabling the development of compact atomic gradiometers.

Market Applications:

• Development of high-precision quantum sensors.
• Compact atomic clocks.
• Compact atomic gravimeters and gradiometers.
• Compact cold-atom education kit

Advantages:

• Single-beam magneto-optical trap.
• Rich access to the MOT with modified configurations
• Multiple simultaneous MOTs
• Simplifying the complexity of atomic gravimeters and gradiometers

Publications:

• Timothy H. Nguyen, Mariam Mchedlidze, Guanghui Su, Balthazar Loglia, Hanbo Yang, and Xuejian Wu, Single-beam magneto-optical trap in back-to-back pyramidal and conical mirrors, arXiv:2507.07925 (2025).
• Nguyen, T. H., Mchedlidze, M., Su, G., Loglia, B., Yang, H., & Wu, X. (2025). Single-beam magneto-optical trap in back-to-back pyramidal and conical mirrors. Physical Review Applied, 24(4), 044058.

Intellectual Property & Development Status: Provisional application filed. Patent pending. Available for licensing and/or research collaboration. For any business development and other collaborative partnerships, contact:  marketingbd@research.rutgers.edu