A Magneto-Optical Trap for Diatomic Molecules

ORAL

Abstract

The magneto-optical trap (MOT) has long been the workhorse for atomic physics and is a powerful technique to rapidly produce ultracold, densesamples of atoms. Extending this technique to produce cold, dense samples of a diverse set of molecules will revolutionize the study of strongly interacting quantum systems, precision measurement and physical chemistry. In this work we demonstrate transverse magneto-optical trapping, in 1D and 2D, of a YO molecular beam using a quasi-cycling transition and an oscillating quadrupole magnetic field. We will then report on progress made towards the realization of a 3 dimensional molecular MOT.

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Authors

  • Mark Yeo

    • JILA, University of Colorado, Boulder

  • Matthew Hummon

    • JILA, University of Colorado, Boulder

  • Alejandra Collopy

    • JILA, University of Colorado, Boulder

  • Benjamin Stuhl

    • Joint Quantum Institute, NIST and University of Maryland

  • Boerge Hemmerling

    • Harvard University

  • Garrett Drayna

    • Harvard University

  • Eunmi Chae

    • Harvard University

  • Aakash Ravi

    • Harvard University

  • Hsin-I Lu

    • Harvard University

  • John Doyle

    • Harvard University

  • Jun Ye

    • JILA, University of Colorado, Boulder