Abstract

The experimental realizations of Bose-Ein-stein condensation in an atomic trap stimulated a broad interest in the properties of coherent quantum gases. The comparison of trapped condensates to superfluid Helium suggests the possibility of studying and analyzing the rotational properties of condensates. To observe the superfluidlike rotation of an atomic condensate, the creation of vortex states is desirable. In this paper, we propose to employ atom optic techniques to achieve this goal.

© 1998 Optical Society of America