A Mid-Infrared Platform Based on Strontium Tweezer Arrays

Abstract

Subwavelength atomic tweezer arrays, in which atoms can be positioned at distances smaller than their emission wavelength, have been proposed as a versatile platform to study collective emission phenomena, such as superradiance and subradiance. Experimentally, the realization of such arrays has been a challenge as typical emission wavelengths in the visible or near-infrared are short compared to typical tweezer spacings in the micrometer range. Here, we use ${}^{88}$Sr atoms in optical tweezer arrays to access a mid-infrared transition at 2,923 nm ($5s5p{}^3{P}_2\to 5s4d{}^3{D}_3$). We identify a magic trapping wavelength at 597.14(3) nm and demonstrate single-atom preparation and imaging with high fidelity. In addition, using 2,923 nm light, we demonstrate resolved-sideband cooling of tweezer-trapped strontium. Beyond enabling studies of collective emission phenomena in flexible arrangements of atoms, our platform opens novel opportunities for dipolar many-body physics and enhanced control over Rydberg dynamics and the strontium fine-structure qubit.

10 pages, 7 main figures, 3 appendix figures