A bosonic mixture for the simulation of impurities and quantum magnetism

An experimental apparatus for the production of quantum degenerate mixtures of rubidium-87 and potassium-41 was renewed in all of its components (optical setup, vacuum apparatus and part of the control electronics’); the rebuilding process lead to significat improvements in both the quality of the final atomic samples (number and control on relative balance) and the stability of the system. This was essential in the perspective of its use for the quantum simulation of fundamental problems in physics with ultracold mixtures in optical lattices. The experimental procedure we developed for the production of double Bose-Einstein condensates is described into detail (up to the optical confinement), alongside with an extensive characterization of the current working conditions.