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  • Open Access

Time dilation effects in micron-size rotating optical Ferris-wheel traps

V. E. Lembessis1,*, J. Yuan2, K. Köksal3,4, and M. Babiker2

  • *Contact author: jun.yuan@york.ac.uk
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Phys. Rev. A 112, 043503 – Published 6 October, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/5m6c-hfqt

Abstract

Advances in lasers and atomic clock technologies have enabled delicate measurements to be made of minute relativistic effects. Here, we propose that such developments should lead to the measurement of relativistic effects involving atoms and molecules in dynamic optical traps. Specifically, we make a case for the study of time dilation in the context of atoms and molecules trapped in a rotating optical Ferris wheel. With experimentally relevant examples, we demonstrate how this would extend relativity tests down to the micron scale and would constitute a potential advance toward micron-size Mössbauer-style spectroscopy for trapped atoms and molecules.

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Phys. Rev. A 112, 043503– Published 6 October, 2025
  • Received 3 March 2025
  • Accepted 25 August 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

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