Abstract

A collection of stationary or nearly stationary atoms would be an ideal sample on which to perform high-resolution spectroscopy. Spectral width, shifts, and distortions that are due to second-order-Doppler and transit-time effects, which now limit high-resolution Doppler-free spectroscopies, would be virtually eliminated. Such low-energy atoms would also be useful for loading into the shallow optical^1,2 or magnetic^3,4 traps that have been proposed. By irradiating an atomic beam with a near-resonant counter- propagating laser, we have produced such a sample of atoms. The average velocity of the atoms is nearly zero, and the spread in velocities is equivalent to that of a gas at a temperature of about 1 K.

© 1984 Optical Society of America