| One of the most important techniques in the ultracold atom toolbox is the optical lattice: a periodic scalar potential formed from standing waves of light. Optical lattices are central to the use of atomic gases as quantum simulators, and allow the exploration of strong-correlation phenomena related to condensed matter systems. I shall describe how to design new forms of optical lattice - so-called "optical flux lattices" - in which optically dressed atoms experience a periodic effective magnetic flux with high mean density. Optical flux lattices have narrow energy bands with nonzero Chern numbers, analogous to the Landau levels of a charged particle in a uniform magnetic field. These lattices will greatly facilitate the achievement of the quantum Hall regime for ultracold atomic gases. |
|