QUROPE Quantum Information Processing and Communication in Europe

We report on the first realization of a two-species magneto-optical trap (MOT) for erbium and dysprosium. The MOT operates on an intercombination line for the respective species. Owing to the narrow-line character of such a cooling transition and the action of gravity, we demonstrate a novel trap geometry employing only five beams in orthogonal configuration. We observe that the mixture is cooled and trapped very efficiently, with up to 5*108 Er atoms and 1*109 Dy atoms at temperatures of about 10 uK. Our results offer an ideal starting condition for the creation of a dipolar quantum mixture of highly magnetic atoms.