Abstract

Optical lattices are ultracold atomic samples trapped in the antinodes of optical standing waves thus forming three-dimensional periodic arrays [1]. We discuss our results on a novel kind of optical lattice in which the fluorescence due to Rayleigh scattering is reduced more than a hundredfold as compared to conventional optical lattices [2]. Such dark optical lattices should be appropriate for future studies at high atomic densities. We also report on Bragg scattering of violet radiation (422 nm) from atoms bound in a conventional optical lattice operating with near-infrared radiation (780 nm) [3]. We demonstrate the temperature dependance of the scattering amplitude (Debye-Waller factor) and discuss the backaction of the atoms on the lattice.

© 1996 IEEE