We have demonstrated a novel diffraction grating for atoms. A collimated beam of sodium atoms with a de Broglie wavelength of 17 pm was diffracted by transmission through an array of slits with a spatial period of 0.2 μm formed in a gold membrane. This is the first reported diffraction of atoms by a fabricated periodic structure. Our transmission grating for atoms can divide or recombine an atomic beam coherently, and may provide the easiest route to the realization of an atom wave interferometer.

• Received 11 July 1988

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.61.1580