Ion transport in macroscopic RF linear traps

Abstract Efficient transport of cold atoms or ions is a subject of increasing concern in many experimental applications reaching from quantum information processing to frequency metrology. A discussion on the transport of ion clouds between macroscopic radiofrequency traps is presented. Molecular dynamics simulations have been used to explore the dynamics of such processes using either analytical potentials or potentials calculated by a software from realistic experimental parameters. The fast variation of the secular frequency of the trapped ions and the spatial extension of the ion cloud during the transport process appear to be the major sources for the final energy gain. The efficiency of transport in terms of transfer probability and ion number is also discussed.