Magneto-optical trapping of aluminum monofluoride
Fuente:
arXiv
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| Autori principali: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Natura: | Preprint |
| Pubblicazione: |
2025
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| _version_ | 1866911224060444672 |
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| author | Padilla-Castillo, J. E. Cai, J. Agarwal, P. Kukreja, P. Thomas, R. Sartakov, B. G. Truppe, S. Meijer, G. Wright, S. C. |
| author_facet | Padilla-Castillo, J. E. Cai, J. Agarwal, P. Kukreja, P. Thomas, R. Sartakov, B. G. Truppe, S. Meijer, G. Wright, S. C. |
| contents | Magneto-optical trapping of molecules has thus far been restricted to molecules with $^2Σ$ electronic ground states. These species are chemically reactive and only support a simple laser cooling scheme from their first excited rotational level. Here, we demonstrate a magneto-optical trap (MOT) of aluminum monofluoride (AlF), a deeply bound and intrinsically stable diatomic molecule with a $^1Σ^+$ electronic ground state. The MOT operates on the strong A$^1Π\leftarrow{}$X$^1Σ^+$ transition near 227.5~nm, whose Q$(J)$ lines are all rotationally closed. We demonstrate a MOT of about $6\times 10^4$ molecules for the $J=1$ level of AlF, more than $10^4$ molecules for $J=2$ and $3$, and with no fundamental limit in going to higher rotational levels. Laser cooling and trapping of AlF is conceptually similar to the introduction of alkaline-earth atoms into cold atom physics, and is key to leveraging its spin-forbidden a$^3Π\leftarrow{}$X$^1Σ^+$ transition for precision spectroscopy and narrow-line cooling. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2506_02266 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Magneto-optical trapping of aluminum monofluoride Padilla-Castillo, J. E. Cai, J. Agarwal, P. Kukreja, P. Thomas, R. Sartakov, B. G. Truppe, S. Meijer, G. Wright, S. C. Atomic Physics Quantum Physics Magneto-optical trapping of molecules has thus far been restricted to molecules with $^2Σ$ electronic ground states. These species are chemically reactive and only support a simple laser cooling scheme from their first excited rotational level. Here, we demonstrate a magneto-optical trap (MOT) of aluminum monofluoride (AlF), a deeply bound and intrinsically stable diatomic molecule with a $^1Σ^+$ electronic ground state. The MOT operates on the strong A$^1Π\leftarrow{}$X$^1Σ^+$ transition near 227.5~nm, whose Q$(J)$ lines are all rotationally closed. We demonstrate a MOT of about $6\times 10^4$ molecules for the $J=1$ level of AlF, more than $10^4$ molecules for $J=2$ and $3$, and with no fundamental limit in going to higher rotational levels. Laser cooling and trapping of AlF is conceptually similar to the introduction of alkaline-earth atoms into cold atom physics, and is key to leveraging its spin-forbidden a$^3Π\leftarrow{}$X$^1Σ^+$ transition for precision spectroscopy and narrow-line cooling. |
| title | Magneto-optical trapping of aluminum monofluoride |
| topic | Atomic Physics Quantum Physics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.02266 |