  We present a scheme to implement a Fermi-Hubbard-like model in ultracold
atoms in optical lattices and analyze the topological features of its ground
state. In particular, we show that the ground state for appropriate parameters
has a large overlap with a lattice version of the bosonic Laughlin state at
filling factor one half. The scheme utilizes laser assisted and normal
tunnelling in a checkerboard optical lattice. The requirements on temperature,
interactions, and hopping strengths are similar to those needed to observe the
N\'eel antiferromagnetic ordering in the standard Fermi-Hubbard model in the
Mott insulating regime.

Strongly Correlated Electrons;Quantum Gases;Quantum Physics