Feshbach Optimized Photoassociation of Rubidium Dimers

Abstract

We report the observation of three different Feshbach optimized photoassociation resonances. The observations are in agreement with theoretical predictions and prior experimental results except for the width of the transitions, which we find to be narrower. This thesis details the steps that lead to this result, including the construction of a cooling, trapping, and imaging apparatus for rubidium atoms. We also present the design of a zero-crossing Zeeman slower for 85Rb using rings of flexible permanent magnets. The design is inexpensive, requires no power or cooling, and can be easily attached and removed for vacuum maintenance. We show theoretically that such a design can reproduce a magnetic field profile of a standard zero-crossing Zeeman slower. Experimental measurements of a prototype and comparisons to theoretical simulations demonstrate the feasibility of the design and point toward future improvements.