Chu and colleagues: three-dimensional laser cooling and confinement of atoms

What changed

Three-dimensional laser cooling of neutral atoms was demonstrated at roughly 240 microkelvin.

Scientific scope

Five-author 1985 PRL; not later sub-Doppler cooling or magneto-optical trapping.

Evidence

The linked sources identify this contribution and its scope. WRS has not independently reconstructed the scientific claims. The record is the exact 1985 Physical Review Letters paper. Earlier radiation-pressure proposals and atomic-beam slowing, later polarization-gradient cooling, magneto-optical traps and Nobel attribution remain separate.

Contributors

• Steven Chu · SCIENCE: Named source author of the scoped work; individual effort shares are not measured.
• L. Hollberg · SCIENCE: Named source author of the scoped work; individual effort shares are not measured.
• J. E. Bjorkholm · SCIENCE: Named source author of the scoped work; individual effort shares are not measured.
• Alex Cable · SCIENCE: Named source author of the scoped work; individual effort shares are not measured.
• A. Ashkin · SCIENCE: Named source author of the scoped work; individual effort shares are not measured.

• Chu et al., three-dimensional viscous confinement and cooling
• Crossref record for optical molasses paper

Provisional WRS assessment, edition 2026-10-16.1. Independent expert calibration is pending. This grade does not certify correctness or assign ownership.

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