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In a uniform gravitational field, classical test objects fall universally. Any reference object or observer will fall in the same universal manner. Therefore, a uniform gravitational field cannot create dynamics between observers and classical test objects. The influence of a uniform gravitational field on matter waves and clocks, however, is described inconsistently throughout research and education. To illustrate, we discuss the behavior of a matter-wave interferometer and a clock redshift experiment in a uniform gravitational field. As a consistent formulation of the equivalence principle implies, a uniform gravitational field has no observable influence on these systems and is physically equivalent to the absence of gravity., Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures

We demonstrate coherent Doppler-free three-photon excitation of the $^{1}S_{0}$$\leftrightarrow$$^{3}P_{0}$ optical clock transition and the $^{1}S_{0}$$\leftrightarrow$$^{3}P_{1}$ intercombination transition in free-space thermal clouds of $^{88}$Sr atoms. By appropriate orientation of the wavevectors of three lasers incident on the atoms, the first-order Doppler shift can be eliminated for all velocity classes. Three-photon excitation of the $^{1}S_{0}$$\leftrightarrow$$^{3}P_{1}$ transition enables high-contrast Ramsey spectroscopy with interrogation times comparable to the 21$\mu$s natural lifetime using a single near-resonant laser source. Three-photon spectroscopy on the $^{1}S_{0}$$\leftrightarrow$$^{3}P_{0}$ clock transition, using only laser frequencies nearly resonant with the $^{1}S_{0}$$\leftrightarrow$$^{3}P_{0}$ and $^{1}S_{0}$$\leftrightarrow$$^{3}P_{1}$ transitions, enables a reduction in Doppler broadening by two orders of magnitude and a corresponding $\sim470$Hz linewidth without a confining potential.

This document presents a summary of the 2023 Terrestrial Very-Long-Baseline Atom Interferometry Workshop hosted by CERN. The workshop brought together experts from around the world to discuss the exciting developments in large-scale atom interferometer (AI) prototypes and their potential for detecting ultralight dark matter and gravitational waves. The primary objective of the workshop was to lay the groundwork for an international TVLBAI proto-collaboration. This collaboration aims to unite researchers from different institutions to strategize and secure funding for terrestrial large-scale AI projects. The ultimate goal is to create a roadmap detailing the design and technology choices for one or more km-scale detectors, which will be operational in the mid-2030s. The key sections of this report present the physics case and technical challenges, together with a comprehensive overview of the discussions at the workshop together with the main conclusions., Comment: Summary of the Terrestrial Very-Long-Baseline Atom Interferometry Workshop held at CERN: https://indico.cern.ch/event/1208783/

The robustness of an atomic fountain interferometer with respect to variations in the initial velocity of the atoms and deviations from the optimal pulse amplitude is examined. We numerically simulate the dynamics of an interferometer in momentum space with a maximum separation of $20 \hbar k$ and map out the expected signal contrast depending on the variance of the initial velocity distribution and the value of the laser field amplitude. We show that an excitation scheme based on rapid adiabatic passage significantly enhances the expected signal contrast compared to the commonly used scheme consisting of a series of Rabi pulses. We demonstrate further substantial increase of the robustness by using optimal control theory to identify splitting and swapping pulses that perform well on an ensemble average of pulse amplitudes and velocities. Our results demonstrate the ability of optimal control to significantly enhance future implementations of atomic fountain interferometry., Comment: Published in Atoms Special Issue Advances in and Prospects for Matter Wave Interferometry (15 pages, 7 figures)

We present a wide-field multi-pass implementation of label-free imaging flow cytometry. Our technique is shown for high-speed flow imaging of ensembles of human red blood cells with up to four passes, demonstrating x4 enhancement in contrast and signal-to-noise. We show that our technique approaches close to the quantum limit of measurement sensitivity, extending the range of optimal imaging to samples in the weakly absorbing regime. This allows for near optimal imaging sensitivity and throughput in a practical scenario of imaging a dynamic sample under limited illumination intensity, surpassing the sensitivity achieved with currently available quantum light sources., Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, including supplemental document. Comments are welcome

The development of voltage-sensitive fluorescent probes suggests fluorescence lifetime as a promising readout for electrical activity in biological systems. Existing approaches fail to achieve the speed and sensitivity required for voltage imaging in neuroscience applications. Here we demonstrate that wide-field electro-optic fluorescence lifetime imaging (EO-FLIM) allows lifetime imaging at kHz frame acquisition rates, spatially resolving action potential propagation and sub-threshold neural activity in live adult Drosophila. Lifetime resolutions of $< 5$ ps at 1 kHz were achieved for single cell voltage recordings. Lifetime readout is limited by photon shot noise and the method provides strong rejection of motion artifacts and technical noise sources. Recordings revealed local transmembrane depolarizations, two types of spikes with distinct fluorescence lifetimes, and phase locking of spikes to an external mechanical stimulus., Comment: This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of the AAAS for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Science on 22 Jun 2023, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adf9725

Nanosecond electron pulses are appealing for ultrafast imaging and electron gating applications, where tunable currents and narrow energy spreads are desirable. Here, we demonstrate photoemission from a Schottky emitter triggered by nanosecond laser pulses and use a dispersive magnetic prism array to image the electron energy distributions. Using photon energies optimally tuned to the emission potential barrier, we generate pulses containing over 10$^5$ electrons with energy spreads below 1 eV with a prompt, single-photon emission process. These results are consistent with theoretical models of laser-triggered electron emission and energetic broadening during propagation and can be widely implemented.

Experiments are beginning to probe the interaction of quantum particles with gravitational fields beyond the uniform-field regime. In non-relativistic quantum mechanics, the gravitational field in such experiments can be written as a superposition state. We empirically demonstrate that alternative theories of gravity can avoid gravitational superposition states only by decoupling the gravitational field energy from the quantum particle's time evolution. Furthermore, such theories must specify a preferred quantum reference frame in which the equations of motion are valid. To the extent that these properties are theoretically implausible, recent experiments provide indirect evidence that gravity has quantum features. Proposed experiments with superposed gravitational sources would provide even stronger evidence that gravity is nonclassical., Comment: 15 pages, 7 figures. Closely matches the published version

Quantum sensors are used for precision timekeeping, field sensing, and quantum communication. Comparisons among a distributed network of these sensors are capable of, for example, synchronizing clocks at different locations. The performance of a sensor network is limited by technical challenges as well as the inherent noise associated with the quantum states used to realize the network. For networks with only local entanglement at each node, the noise performance of the network improves at best with square root of the number of nodes. Here, we demonstrate that nonlocal entanglement between network nodes offers better scaling with network size. A shared quantum nondemolition measurement entangles a clock network with up to four nodes. This network provides up to 4.5 dB better precision than one without nonlocal entanglement, and 11.6 dB improvement as compared to a network of sensors operating at the quantum projection noise limit. We demonstrate the generality of the approach with atomic clock and atomic interferometer protocols, in scientific and technologically relevant configurations optimized for intrinsically differential comparisons of sensor outputs.

Phase estimation is one of the most important facets of quantum metrology, with applications in sensing, microscopy, and quantum computation. When estimating a phase shift in a lossy medium, there is an upper bound on the attainable information per particle sent through the phase shift. Previously, only entanglement-enhanced measurements have been shown to saturate this bound. We introduce a measurement scheme which can saturate the bound without relying on entanglement.

A number of visions for a new generation of dose-efficient electron microscopes have been advanced. These proposals, while inspired by quantum principles, make little contact with the broader field of quantum metrology. We discuss a framework calculating the amount of information carried by each electron. This makes it possible to evaluate the potential effectiveness of any particular microscope architecture relative to the quantum limit for information per dose. In the case of phase imaging, we argue this limit is at least an order of magnitude beyond what is possible with aberration-free Zernike phase contrast., Comment: The following article has been submitted to Applied Physics Letters

We present a supervised learning model to calibrate the photon collection rate during the fluorescence imaging of cold atoms. The linear regression model finds the collection rate at each location on the sensor such that the atomic population difference equals that of a highly precise optical cavity measurement. This 192 variable regression results in a measurement variance 27% smaller than our previous single variable regression calibration. The measurement variance is now in agreement with the theoretical limit due to other known noise sources. This model efficiently trains in less than a minute on a standard personal computer's CPU, and requires less than 10 minutes of data collection. Furthermore, the model is applicable across a large changes in population difference and across data collected on different days.

We present a continuous-wave, post selection-free implementation of a widefield optical multipass microscope. It can be operated with a spatially and temporally incoherent light source, and requires no active outcoupling or exotic detection schemes. This implementation is capable of deterministically interrogating a sample sequentially up to $m=4$ times. Through multiple interrogations, a linear enhancement in phase shift and absorption imparted by the sample can be achieved, fundamentally increasing the signal-to-noise of the obtainable images.

We demonstrate an electro-optic wide-field method to enable fluorescence lifetime microscopy (FLIM) with high throughput and single-molecule sensitivity. Resonantly driven Pockels cells are used to efficiently gate images at 39 MHz, allowing fluorescence lifetime to be captured on standard camera sensors. Lifetime imaging of single molecules is enabled in wide-field with exposure times of less than 100 milliseconds. This capability allows combination of wide-field FLIM with single-molecule super-resolution localization microscopy. Fast single-molecule dynamics such as FRET and molecular binding events are captured from wide-field images without prior spatial knowledge. A lifetime sensitivity of 1.9 times the photon shot-noise limit is achieved, and high throughput is shown by acquiring wide-field FLIM images with millisecond exposure and $>10^8$ photons per frame. Resonant electro-optic FLIM allows lifetime contrast in any wide-field microscopy method., Comment: 23 pages, 13 figures

MAGIS-100 is a next-generation quantum sensor under construction at Fermilab that aims to explore fundamental physics with atom interferometry over a 100-meter baseline. This novel detector will search for ultralight dark matter, test quantum mechanics in new regimes, and serve as a technology pathfinder for future gravitational wave detectors in a previously unexplored frequency band. It combines techniques demonstrated in state-of-the-art 10-meter-scale atom interferometers with the latest technological advances of the world's best atomic clocks. MAGIS-100 will provide a development platform for a future kilometer-scale detector that would be sufficiently sensitive to detect gravitational waves from known sources. Here we present the science case for the MAGIS concept, review the operating principles of the detector, describe the instrument design, and study the detector systematics., Comment: 65 pages, 18 figures

We present the design and prototype of a switchable electron mirror, along with a technique for driving it with a flat-top pulse. We employ a general technique for electronic pulse-shaping, where high fidelity of the pulse shape is required but the characteristics of the system, which are possibly nonlinear, are not known. This driving technique uses an arbitrary waveform generator to pre-compensate the pulse, with a simple iterative algorithm used to generate the input waveform. We demonstrate improvement in RMS error of roughly two orders of magnitude over an uncompensated waveform. This is a broadly applicable, general method for arbitrary pulse shaping.

In order to efficiently image a non-absorbing sample (a phase object), dedicated phase contrast optics are required. Typically, these optics are designed with the assumption that the sample is weakly scattering, implying a linear relation between a sample's phase and its transmission function. In the strongly scattering, non-linear case, the standard optics are ineffective and the transfer functions used to characterize them are uninformative. We use the Fisher Information (FI) to assess the efficiency of various phase imaging schemes and to calculate an Information Transfer Function (ITF). We show that a generalized version of Zernike phase contrast is efficient given sufficient foreknowledge of the sample. We show that with no foreknowledge, a random sensing measurement yields a significant fraction of the available information. Finally, we introduce a generalized approach to common path interferometry which can be optimized to prioritize sensitivity to particular sample features. Each of these measurements can be performed using Fourier lenses and phase masks.

Many different formalisms exist for computing the phase of a matter-wave interferometer. However, it can be challenging to develop physical intuition about what a particular interferometer is actually measuring or about whether a given classical measurement provides equivalent information. Here we investigate the physical content of the interferometer phase through a series of thought experiments. In low-order potentials, a matter-wave interferometer with a single internal state provides the same information as a sum of position measurements of a classical test object. In high-order potentials, the interferometer phase becomes decoupled from the motion of the interferometer arms, and the phase contains information that cannot be obtained by any set of position measurements on the interferometer trajectory. This phase shift in a high-order potential fundamentally distinguishes matter-wave interferometers from classical measuring devices., Comment: v2, 24 pages, 5 figures

We demonstrate a narrow-linewidth 780 nm laser system with up to 40 W power and a frequency modulation bandwidth of 230 MHz. Efficient overlap on nonlinear optical elements combines two pairs of phase-locked frequency components into a single beam. Serrodyne modulation with a high-quality sawtooth waveform is used to perform frequency shifts with > 96.5 % efficiency over tens of MHz. This system enables next-generation atom interferometry by delivering simultaneous, Stark-shift-compensated dual beam splitters while minimizing spontaneous emission., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures

Does gravity influence local measurements? We use a dual-species atom interferometer with $2\,\text{s}$ of free-fall time to measure the relative acceleration between $^{85}$Rb and $^{87}$Rb wave packets in the Earth's gravitational field. Systematic errors arising from kinematic differences between the isotopes are suppressed by calibrating the angles and frequencies of the interferometry beams. We find an E\"otv\"os parameter of $\eta = [1.6\; \pm\; 1.8\; \text{(stat)}\; \pm \; 3.4 \; \text{(sys)}] \times 10^{-12}$, consistent with zero violation of the equivalence principle. With a resolution of up to $1.4 \times 10^{-11} \, g$ per shot, we demonstrate a sensitivity to $\eta$ of $5.4 \times 10^{-11}\,/\sqrt{\text{Hz}}$., Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, 1 Table

A technique is demonstrated that allows free space atomic fountain clocks and interferometers to utilize optical cavity generated spin-squeezed states with over $390\,000$ ${}^{87}\text{Rb}$ atoms. Fluorescence imaging is used for population spectroscopy, after a free fall time of 4 milliseconds, to resolve a single-shot phase sensitivity of $814 (61)$ microradians, which is $5.8(0.6)$ decibels (dB) below the quantum projection limit. The dynamic range is observed to be 100 milliradians. When operating as a microwave atomic clock with $240\,000$ atoms at a 3.6 ms Ramsey time, a single-shot fractional frequency stability of $8.4(0.2)\times10^{-12}$ is reported, $3.8(0.2)$ dB below the quantum projection limit.

The compatibility of cavity-generated spin-squeezed atomic states with atom-interferometric sensors that require freely falling atoms is demonstrated. An ensemble of $500,000$ spin-squeezed atoms in a high-finesse optical cavity with near-uniform atom-cavity coupling is prepared, released into free space, recaptured in the cavity, and probed. Up to $\sim$10 dB of metrologically-relevant squeezing is retrieved for 700 microsecond free-fall times, and decaying levels of squeezing are realized for up to 3 millisecond free-fall times. The degradation of squeezing results from loss of atom-cavity coupling homogeneity between the initial squeezed state generation and final collective state read-out. A theoretical model is developed to quantify this degradation and this model is experimentally validated.

We propose in this White Paper a concept for a space experiment using cold atoms to search for ultra-light dark matter, and to detect gravitational waves in the frequency range between the most sensitive ranges of LISA and the terrestrial LIGO/Virgo/KAGRA/INDIGO experiments. This interdisciplinary experiment, called Atomic Experiment for Dark Matter and Gravity Exploration (AEDGE), will also complement other planned searches for dark matter, and exploit synergies with other gravitational wave detectors. We give examples of the extended range of sensitivity to ultra-light dark matter offered by AEDGE, and how its gravitational-wave measurements could explore the assembly of super-massive black holes, first-order phase transitions in the early universe and cosmic strings. AEDGE will be based upon technologies now being developed for terrestrial experiments using cold atoms, and will benefit from the space experience obtained with, e.g., LISA and cold atom experiments in microgravity. This paper is based on a submission (v1) in response to the Call for White Papers for the Voyage 2050 long-term plan in the ESA Science Programme. ESA limited the number of White Paper authors to 30. However, in this version (v2) we have welcomed as supporting authors participants in the Workshop on Atomic Experiments for Dark Matter and Gravity Exploration held at CERN: ({\tt https://indico.cern.ch/event/830432/}), as well as other interested scientists, and have incorporated additional material., Comment: V2 -- added support authors

Multi-pass transmission electron microscopy (MPTEM) has been proposed as a way to reduce damage to radiation-sensitive materials. For the field of cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), this would significantly reduce the number of projections needed to create a 3D model and would allow the imaging of lower-contrast, more heterogeneous samples. We have designed a 10 keV proof-of-concept MPTEM. The column features fast-switching gated electron mirrors which cause each electron to interrogate the sample multiple times. A linear approximation for the multi-pass contrast transfer function (CTF) is developed to explain how the resolution depends on the number of passes through the sample.

Nanosecond temporal resolution enables new methods for wide-field imaging like time-of-flight, gated detection, and fluorescence lifetime. The optical efficiency of existing approaches, however, presents challenges for low-light applications common to fluorescence microscopy and single-molecule imaging. We demonstrate the use of Pockels cells for wide-field image gating with nanosecond temporal resolution and high photon collection efficiency. Two temporal frames are obtained by combining a Pockels cell with a pair of polarizing beam-splitters. We show multi-label fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM), single-molecule lifetime spectroscopy, and fast single-frame FLIM at the camera frame rate with $10^3 - 10^5$ times higher throughput than single photon counting. Finally, we demonstrate a space-to-time image multiplexer using a re-imaging optical cavity with a tilted mirror to extend the Pockels cell technique to multiple temporal frames. These methods enable nanosecond imaging with standard optical systems and sensors, opening a new temporal dimension for low-light microscopy., Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures

In an ideal test of the equivalence principle, the test masses fall in a common inertial frame. A real experiment is affected by gravity gradients, which introduce systematic errors by coupling to initial kinematic differences between the test masses. We demonstrate a method that reduces the sensitivity of a dual-species atom interferometer to initial kinematics by using a frequency shift of the mirror pulse to create an effective inertial frame for both atomic species. This suppresses the gravity-gradient-induced dependence of the differential phase on initial kinematic differences by a factor of 100 and enables a precise measurement of these differences. We realize a relative precision of $\Delta g / g \approx 6 \times 10^{-11}$ per shot, which improves on the best previous result for a dual-species atom interferometer by more than three orders of magnitude. By suppressing gravity gradient systematic errors to below one part in $10^{13}$, these results pave the way for an atomic test of the equivalence principle at an accuracy comparable with state-of-the-art classical tests., Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures

We assess the science reach and technical feasibility of a satellite mission based on precision atomic sensors configured to detect gravitational radiation. Conceptual advances in the past three years indicate that a two-satellite constellation with science payloads consisting of atomic sensors based on laser cooled atomic Sr can achieve scientifically interesting gravitational wave strain sensitivities in a frequency band between the LISA and LIGO detectors, roughly 30 mHz to 10 Hz. The discovery potential of the proposed instrument ranges from from observation of new astrophysical sources (e.g. black hole and neutron star binaries) to searches for cosmological sources of stochastic gravitational radiation and searches for dark matter., Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures

Quantum enhanced microscopy allows for measurements at high sensitivities and low damage. Recently, multi-pass microscopy was introduced as such a scheme, exploiting the sensitivity enhancement offered by multiple photon-sample interactions. Here we theoretically and numerically compare three different contrast enhancing techniques that are all based on self-imaging cavities: CW cavity enhanced microscopy, cavity ring-down microscopy and multi-pass microscopy. We show that all three schemes can lead to sensitivities beyond the standard quantum limit., Comment: 13 pages, 7 figures

In their correspondence [arXiv:1610.07633] Drummond and Brand criticize our work [Nature Physics 12, 451-454 (2016) http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nphys3631]. We show that their criticism is misleading and unfounded., Comment: 2 pages, added url in abstract

Feynman once asked physicists to build better electron microscopes to be able to watch biology at work. While electron microscopes can now provide atomic resolution, electron beam induced specimen damage precludes high resolution imaging of sensitive materials, such as single proteins or polymers. Here, we use simulations to show that an electron microscope based on a simplemulti-pass measurement protocol enables imaging of single proteins at reduced damage and at nanometer resolution, without averaging structures overmultiple images. Whilewe demonstrate the method for particular imaging targets, the approach is broadly applicable and is expected to improve resolution and sensitivity for a range of electron microscopy imaging modalities, including, for example, scanning and spectroscopic techniques. The approach implements a quantum mechanically optimal strategy which under idealized conditions can be considered interaction-free. In practice, an order-of-magnitude reduction in damage at equivalent resolution appears feasible., Comment: 3 figures

We present a single-source dual atom interferometer and utilize it as a gradiometer for precise gravitational measurements. The macroscopic separation between interfering atomic wave packets (as large as 16 cm) reveals the interplay of recoil effects and gravitational curvature from a nearby Pb source mass. The gradiometer baseline is set by the laser wavelength and pulse timings, which can be measured to high precision. Using a long drift time and large momentum transfer atom optics, the gradiometer reaches a resolution of $3 \times 10^{-9}$ s$^{-2}$ per shot and measures a 1 rad phase shift induced by the source mass., Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, Supplemental material

We describe an atom interferometric gravitational wave detector design that can operate in a resonant mode for increased sensitivity. By oscillating the positions of the atomic wavepackets, this resonant detection mode allows for coherently enhanced, narrow-band sensitivity at target frequencies. The proposed detector is flexible and can be rapidly switched between broadband and narrow-band detection modes. For instance, a binary discovered in broadband mode can subsequently be studied further as the inspiral evolves by using a tailored narrow-band detector response. In addition to functioning like a lock-in amplifier for astrophysical events, the enhanced sensitivity of the resonant approach also opens up the possibility of searching for important cosmological signals, including the stochastic gravitational wave background produced by inflation. We give an example of detector parameters which would allow detection of inflationary gravitational waves down to $\Omega_\text{GW} \sim 10^{-14}$ for a two satellite space-based detector., Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures

One of the astounding consequences of quantum mechanics is that it allows the detection of a target using an incident probe, with only a low probability of interaction of the probe and the target. This 'quantum weirdness' could be applied in the field of electron microscopy to generate images of beam-sensitive specimens with substantially reduced damage to the specimen. A reduction of beam-induced damage to specimens is especially of great importance if it can enable imaging of biological specimens with atomic resolution. Following a recent suggestion that interaction-free measurements are possible with electrons, we now analyze the difficulties of actually building an atomic resolution interaction-free electron microscope, or "quantum electron microscope". A quantum electron microscope would require a number of unique components not found in conventional transmission electron microscopes. These components include a coherent electron-beam splitter or two-state-coupler, and a resonator structure to allow each electron to interrogate the specimen multiple times, thus supporting high success probabilities for interaction-free detection of the specimen. Different system designs are presented here, which are based on four different choices of two-state-couplers: a thin crystal, a grating mirror, a standing light wave and an electro-dynamical pseudopotential. Challenges for the detailed electron optical design are identified as future directions for development. While it is concluded that it should be possible to build an atomic resolution quantum electron microscope, we have also identified a number of hurdles to the development of such a microscope and further theoretical investigations that will be required to enable a complete interpretation of the images produced by such a microscope.

The emission times of laser-triggered electrons from a sharp tungsten tip are directly characterized under ultrafast, near-infrared laser excitation at Keldysh parameters $6.6< \gamma < 19.1$. Emission delays up to 10 fs are observed, which are inferred from the energy gain of photoelectrons emitted into a synchronously driven microwave cavity. ~ fs timing resolution is achieved in a configuration capable of measuring timing shifts up to 55 ps. The technique can also be used to measure the microwave phase inside the cavity with a precision below 70 fs upon the energy resolved detection of a single electron., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures

We propose a scheme based on a heterodyne laser link that allows for long baseline gravitational wave detection using atom interferometry. While the baseline length in previous atom-based proposals is constrained by the need for a reference laser to remain collimated as it propagates between two satellites, here we circumvent this requirement by employing a strong local oscillator laser near each atom ensemble that is phase locked to the reference laser beam. Longer baselines offer a number of potential advantages, including enhanced sensitivity, simplified atom optics, and reduced atomic source flux requirements., Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures

The single-particle density is the most basic quantity that can be calculated from a given many-body wave function. It provides the probability to find a particle at a given position when the average over many realizations of an experiment is taken. However, the outcome of single experimental shots of ultracold atom experiments is determined by the $N$-particle probability density. This difference can lead to surprising results. For example, independent Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) with definite particle numbers form interference fringes even though no fringes would be expected based on the single-particle density [1-4]. By drawing random deviates from the $N$-particle probability density single experimental shots can be simulated from first principles [1, 3, 5]. However, obtaining expressions for the $N$-particle probability density of realistic time-dependent many-body systems has so far been elusive. Here, we show how single experimental shots of general ultracold bosonic systems can be simulated based on numerical solutions of the many-body Schr\"odinger equation. We show how full counting distributions of observables involving any number of particles can be obtained and how correlation functions of any order can be evaluated. As examples we show the appearance of interference fringes in interacting independent BECs, fluctuations in the collisions of strongly attractive BECs, the appearance of randomly fluctuating vortices in rotating systems and the center of mass fluctuations of attractive BECs in a harmonic trap. The method described is broadly applicable to bosonic many-body systems whose phenomenology is driven by information beyond what is typically available in low-order correlation functions., Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures

Using a matter wave lens and a long time-of-flight, we cool an ensemble of Rb-87 atoms in two dimensions to an effective temperature of less than $50^{+50}_{-30}$~pK. A short pulse of red-detuned light generates an optical dipole force that collimates the ensemble. We also report a three-dimensional magnetic lens that substantially reduces the chemical potential of evaporatively cooled ensembles with high atom number. By observing such low temperatures, we set limits on proposed modifications to quantum mechanics in the macroscopic regime. These cooling techniques yield bright, collimated sources for precision atom interferometry., Comment: 5 pagers, 5 figures

Light field microscopy methods together with three dimensional (3D) deconvolution can be used to obtain single shot 3D images of atomic clouds. We demonstrate the method using a test setup which extracts three dimensional images from a fluorescent $^{87}$Rb atomic vapor., Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures

We demonstrate a many-atom-cavity system with a high-finesse dual-wavelength standing wave cavity in which all participating rubidium atoms are nearly identically coupled to a 780-nm cavity mode. This homogeneous coupling is enforced by a one-dimensional optical lattice formed by the field of a 1560-nm cavity mode., Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures

We present a method for determining the phase and contrast of a single shot of an atom interferometer. The application of a phase shear across the atom ensemble yields a spatially varying fringe pattern at each output port, which can be imaged directly. This method is broadly relevant to atom interferometric precision measurement, as we demonstrate in a 10 m Rb-87 atomic fountain by implementing an atom interferometric gyrocompass with 10 millidegree precision., Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures

We show that light-pulse atom interferometry with atomic point sources and spatially resolved detection enables multi-axis (two rotation, one acceleration) precision inertial sensing at long interrogation times. Using this method, we demonstrate a light-pulse atom interferometer for Rb-87 with 1.4 cm peak wavepacket separation and a duration of 2T = 2.3 seconds. The inferred acceleration sensitivity of each shot is 6.7 * 10^(-12) g, which improves on previous limits by more than two orders of magnitude. We also measure the Earth's rotation rate with a precision of 200 nrad/s., Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures

Laser frequency noise is a dominant noise background for the detection of gravitational waves using long-baseline optical interferometry. Amelioration of this noise requires near simultaneous strain measurements on more than one interferometer baseline, necessitating, for example, more than two satellites for a space-based detector, or two interferometer arms for a ground-based detector. We describe a new detection strategy based on recent advances in optical atomic clocks and atom interferometry which can operate at long-baselines and which is immune to laser frequency noise. Laser frequency noise is suppressed because the signal arises strictly from the light propagation time between two ensembles of atoms. This new class of sensor allows sensitive gravitational wave detection with only a single baseline. This approach also has practical applications in, for example, the development of ultra-sensitive gravimeters and gravity gradiometers., Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures