Enhanced Sensitivity to Variation of m{sub e}/m{sub p} in Molecular Spectra

Journal Article · Fri Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 2008 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PHYSREVLETT.100.043202· OSTI ID:21024655

DeMille, D; Sainis, S; Sage, J ^[1]; Bergeman, T ^[2]; Kotochigova, S ^[3]; Tiesinga, E ^[4]

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1. Department of Physics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520 (United States)
2. Department of Physics and Astronomy, SUNY, Stony Brook, New York 11794 (United States)
3. Physics Department, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19122 (United States)
4. Joint Quantum Institute and Atomic Physics Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899 (United States)

We propose new experiments with high sensitivity to a possible variation of the electron-to-proton mass ratio {mu}{identical_to}m{sub e}/m{sub p}. We consider a nearly degenerate pair of molecular vibrational levels, each associated with a different electronic potential. With respect to a change in {mu}, the change in the splitting between such levels can be large both on an absolute scale and relative to the splitting. We demonstrate the existence of such pairs of states in Cs{sub 2}, where the narrow spectral lines achievable with ultracold molecules make the system promising for future searches for small variations in {mu}.

• OSTI ID: 21024655
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Vol. 100, Issue 4; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.043202; (c) 2008 The American Physical Society; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0031-9007
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
CESIUM
ELECTRONS
MASS
PROTONS
SPECTRA
VARIATIONS