Ultracold ground-state molecule production in sodium

Journal Article · Fri Nov 01 00:00:00 EST 2002 · Physical Review. A

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.66.053401· OSTI ID:20632315

Fatemi, Fredrik K; Jones, Kevin M; Lett, Paul D; Tiesinga, Eite ^[1]

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1. Atomic Physics Division, 100 Bureau Drive, MS 8424, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8424 (United States)

We have observed the formation of ground-state Na{sub 2} molecules via the spontaneous decay of excited molecules created by the photoassociation of ultracold atoms. We measure the binding energies of molecules created in three hyperfine components of the lowest singlet and triplet potentials of Na{sub 2} by two different methods. Two of the features are purely triplet a {sup 3}{sigma}{sub u}{sup +} (v=15) (quasibound) states that have not been previously observed, while the third is a mixed X {sup 1}{sigma}{sub g}{sup +}-a {sup 3}{sigma}{sub u}{sup +} state. The molecules are detected with high-resolution cw laser ionization techniques and binding energies are measured to within 10 MHz.

• OSTI ID: 20632315
• Journal Information: Physical Review. A, Vol. 66, Issue 5; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevA.66.053401; (c) 2002 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1050-2947
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS
ATOMS
BINDING ENERGY
DECAY
GROUND STATES
IONIZATION
LASER RADIATION
MHZ RANGE
MOLECULES
PHOTON-ATOM COLLISIONS
POTENTIALS
QUASIBOUND STATE
RADIATION PRESSURE
RESOLUTION
SODIUM
SODIUM SULFIDES
TRIPLETS