Combined chips for atom optics

We present experiments with Bose-Einstein condensates on a combined atom chip. The combined structure consists of a large-scale “carrier chip” and smaller “atom-optics chips,” containing micron-sized elements. This allows us to work with condensates very close to chip surfaces without suffering from fragmentation or losses due to thermally driven spin flips. Precise three-dimensional positioning and transport with constant trap frequencies are described. Bose-Einstein condensates were manipulated with submicron accuracy above atom-optics chips. As an application of atom chips, a direction sensitive magnetic-field microscope is demonstrated.