Atom diode: A laser device for a unidirectional transmission of ground-state atoms

An atom diode, which lets the ground-state atom pass in one direction but not in the opposite direction in a velocity range, was developed. The atom diode model can be realized with laser interactions. Two lasers that achieve stimulated Raman adiabatic passage with a state-selective reflecting interaction or the ground state were combined. The diode was deviced based on the adiabatic transfer achieved with these two lasers and a third laser potential that reflects the ground state.