ULTRACOLD YTTERBIUM ATOMS IN OPTICAL LATTICES
Quantum degenerate ytterbium(Yb) gases in 3D optical lattices are studied for bosonic isotopes and mixtures of bosonic and fermionic isotopes. In 3D optical lattices, a quantum phase transition from a superfluid to a Mott insulating state is observed. In the deep Mott insulating regime, one-color photoassociation(PA) spectroscopy is performed to probe site occupancy. Bose-Fermi mixtures of Yb isotopes in 3D optical lattices are also studied using two different combinations of mixtures.