Laser cooling and trapping

by Harold J. Metcalf

"Laser cooling allows one to slow atoms to roughly the speed of a mosquito and to control their motion with unprecedented precision. This elegant technique, whereby atoms, molecules, and even microscopic beads of glass can be trapped in small regions of free space by beams of light and subsequently moved at will using other beams, has revolutionized many areas of physics. In particular, it provides a useful research tool for the study of individual atoms, for investigating the details of chemical reactions, and even for the study of atomic motion in the quantum domain."--BOOK JACKET. "The book is intended for advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students who have some basic knowledge of optics and quantum mechanics."--BOOK JACKET.