Rydberg atoms are highly excited atoms with high principal quantum numbers. They are prime candidates for quantum computation schemes and quantum simulators because of their strong and controllable long-range interactions. One central ingredient of these schemes is the dipole blockade mechanism, by which the excitation of an atom to a Rydberg state is inhibited if another, already excited, atom is less than the so-called blockade radius away.

In my talk I will discuss our observation of the Rydberg blockade in ultra-cold Rb atoms through sub-Poissonian counting statistics as well as our recent results on Rydberg excitations of Bose Einstein condensates in optical lattices. Our results agree with the picture of localized collective Rydberg excitations including nearest-neighbour blockade.


Seminar, November 4, 2011, 15:00. Blue Lecture Room

Hosted by Prof. Hugues de Riedmatten