All-optical Bose-Einstein condensation using a compressible crossed dipole trap

We describe an all-optical method of making a Rb-87 Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). Atoms are first cooled in an optical lattice and loaded into a crossed dipole trap with 1.06 mum light. Then the density is increased by dynamically reducing the trap size, while the atoms are evaporatively cooled by reducing: them light intensity., Every 3.3 s, we obtain a nearly pure BEC with 3.5 x 10(5) atoms in, their lowest internal energy state.