Figure 1
left: beam configuration of the optical box trap;
right: absorption image of a BEC of 3000 atoms in a box.

We have produced Bose-Einstein condensates in an optical box trap. This optical trap type has strong confinement in two directions comparable to that which is possible in an optical lattice, yet produces individual condensates rather than the thousands typical of a lattice. The box trap is integrated with single-atom detection capability, paving the way for studies of quantum atom statistics.

Bose-Einstein Condensate in a Box, T.P. Meyrath, F. Schreck, J.L. Hanssen, C-S. Chuu, and M.G. Raizen, Phys. Rev. A, 71 , 041604(R) (2005).