Maxwell, S. E.Brahms, N.deCarvalho, R.Glenn, DavidHelton, J. S.Nguyen, S. V.Patterson, D.Petricka, J.DeMille, D.Doyle, John2016-08-232005Maxwell, S. E., N. Brahms, R. deCarvalho, D. R. Glenn, J. S. Helton, S. V. Nguyen, D. Patterson, J. Petricka, D. DeMille, and J. M. Doyle. 2005. High-Flux Beam Source for Cold, Slow Atoms or Molecules. Physical Review Letters 95, no. 17. doi:10.1103/physrevlett.95.173201.0031-9007http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:27867250We demonstrate and characterize a high-flux beam source for cold, slow atoms or molecules. The desired species is vaporized using laser ablation, then cooled by thermalization in a cryogenic cell of buffer gas. The beam is formed by particles exiting a hole in the buffer gas cell. We characterize the properties of the beam (flux, forward velocity, temperature) for both an atom (Na) and a molecule (PbO) under varying buffer gas density, and discuss conditions for optimizing these beam parameters. Our source compares favorably to existing techniques of beam formation, for a variety of applications.en-USJournal Article2016-08-2310.1103/PhysRevLett.95.173201