Transferring laser-cooled atoms to a spatially separated magnetic trap using a far-off resonance optical guide

The size of alkali vapour Bose-Einstein condensates is determined by the number of atoms which can be collected in a magneto-optical trap. This number is limited by processes involving near-resonant light. A possible technique to exceed the number limit is to load a conservative trap which is spatially separated from the laser cooling region. Here we report on an experiment where cold atoms are transferred From a magneto-optical trap to a spatially separated magnetic trap using an optically guided atomic fountain. This technique offers efficient transfer without requiring any near-resonant light. The extension to multiple and continuous loading is discussed, and we conclude that loading a spatially separated conservative trap offers a promising route towards steady-state Bose-Einstein condensation.