A combined trap for chromium and rubidium atoms

A new apparatus for simultaneous trapping of chromium and rubidium in spatially and temporally overlapping traps is set up. A beam of chromium atoms is generated by a high temperature effusion cell and decelerated by a Zeeman slower before being loaded into a magneto-optical trap (MOT), whereas the rubidium MOT is loaded from thermal atoms out of a resistively heated getter source. The bosonic isotope (/sup 52/Cr) which is easier to cool is used to test the new approach.