  We experimentally investigate the interaction between one and two atoms and
the field of a high-finesse optical resonator. Laser-cooled caesium atoms are
transported into the cavity using an optical dipole trap. We monitor the
interaction dynamics of a single atom strongly coupled to the resonator mode
for several hundred milliseconds by observing the cavity transmission.
Moreover, we investigate the position-dependent coupling of one and two atoms
by shuttling them through the cavity mode. We demonstrate an alternative
method, which suppresses heating effects, to analyze the atom-field interaction
by retrieving the atom from the cavity and by measuring its final state.
