We realize the first magneto-optical trap of an atom in main group III of the Periodic Table. Our atom of choice (indium) does not have a transition out of its ground state suitable for laser cooling; therefore, laser cooling is performed on the $|5P_{3/2},F=6\rangle \to |5D_{5/2},F=7\rangle$ transition, where $|5P_{3/2},F=6\rangle$ is a long-lived metastable state. Optimization of our trap parameters results in atoms numbers as large as $5\times {10}^8$ atoms with temperatures of order 1 mK. Additionally, through trap decay measurements, we infer a one-body trap lifetime of $12.3\mathrm{s}$. This lifetime is consistent with background gas collisions and indicates that our repumpers have closed all leakage pathways. We also infer a two-body loss rate of $1.6\times {10}^{-11}{\mathrm{cm}}^3/\mathrm{s}$, which is comparable to those measured in alkali atoms. The techniques demonstrated in this Letter can be straightforwardly applied to other group-III atoms, and our results pave the way for realizing quantum degenerate gases of these particles.

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• Atom & ion cooling
• Cooling & trapping