Influence of gravity on atomic interferometers

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• Jeremiah Mitchell, University of Cambridge
• Tuesday 25 February 2025, 11:00-12:00
• Ryle Seminar Room.

If you have a question about this talk, please contact Dr. Aashaq Shah.

Atom interferometers employ precise manipulation of the quantum states of ultracold atom ensembles to probe field variations between the “arms” of the interferometer. The phase of the quantum states continually evolves and accumulates while the atoms interact with laser light pulses used as the interferometer optics and while in free-fall propagation between light pulses. Quantum interference of the atomic matter-waves encodes these fluctuations in the population difference of the quantum states of the ensemble. The leading order phase shift arises from the coupling of the atom acceleration to the natural frequency of the atomic states. For this reason atom interferometers have been built to be precise gravimeters and inertial sensors finding use in tests of Newtons’s constant and the Einstein equivalence principle. They may also serve as a test bed for other precise tests of gravity.

The AION and MAGIS collaborations will utilize this quantum technology in a gradiometer configuration to test fundamental physics and search for ultralight dark matter and gravitational waves in the decihertz frequency range (0.1–1 Hz). In this talk I will develop the influence of a semiclassical space and time dependent Newtonian gravitational field on atom interferometers and demonstrate the potential noise sources long-baseline instruments will come up against. I will also discuss future prospects for relativistic and non-classical tests of gravity with these extremely sensitive sensors.

This talk is part of the Cavendish HEP Seminars series.

This talk is included in these lists:

• All Cavendish Laboratory Seminars
• All Talks (aka the CURE list)
• Cavendish HEP Seminars
• Centre for Health Leadership and Enterprise
• Featured lists
• ME Seminar
• Neurons, Fake News, DNA and your iPhone: The Mathematics of Information
• Ryle Seminar Room
• School of Physical Sciences
• Thin Film Magnetic Talks
• few29

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