The fascinating world of Bose–Einstein condensates (BECs), macroscopic coherent matter waves that have greatly influenced quantum science and atomic physics, is the focus of today's episode. We are delighted to have Dr. Chen and his team, who share their groundbreaking work on continuous Bose–Einstein condensation.

BECs have a crucial role in quantum simulation and sensing, underlying atom interferometers in space, and enabling ambitious tests of Einstein’s equivalence principle. However, a persistent challenge has been the need for sequential cooling stages in quantum gas devices, confining these devices to pulsed operation.

Our esteemed guests showcase their breakthrough in overcoming this limitation by demonstrating a continuous-wave (CW) condensate of strontium atoms that persists indefinitely. This continuous condensation process is sustained by the Bose-stimulated gain of atoms from a thermal bath, which is constantly replenished. Dr. Chen's team's experiment is compared to the matter wave analog of a continuous wave optical laser with fully reflective cavity mirrors. This serves as a proof-of-principle demonstration, contributing a new component to atom optics and opening the door to constructing continuous coherent-matter-wave devices.

Join us on this enlightening journey as we delve into the groundbreaking work of Dr. Chen and his team in the intriguing world of Bose–Einstein condensates.

Keywords: Dr. Chen, Bose–Einstein condensates, BECs, Quantum Science, Atomic Physics, Quantum Simulation, Continuous-Wave Condensate, Atom Optics, Coherent Matter Wave, Quantum Gas Devices.

Chen, CC., González Escudero, R., Minář, J. et al. Continuous Bose–Einstein condensation. Nature (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-04731-z could lead to continuous-wave atom lasers