Quasi-2D Confinement of a BEC in a Combined Optical and Magnetic Potential

We have added an optical potential to a conventional Time-averaged Orbiting Potential (TOP) trap to create a highly anisotropic hybrid trap for ultracold atoms. Axial confinement is provided by the optical potential; the maximum frequency currently obtainable in this direction is 2.2 kHz for rubidium. The radial confinement is independently controlled by the magnetic trap and can be a factor of 700 times smaller than in the axial direction. This large anisotropy is more than sufficient to confine condensates with ~10^5 atoms in a Quasi-2D (Q2D) regime, and we have verified this by measuring a change in the free expansion of the condensate; our results agree with a variational model.