Abstract
We demonstrate a scheme for optical cycling in the polar, diatomic molecule strontium monofluoride (SrF) using the electronic transition. SrF’s highly diagonal Franck-Condon factors suppress vibrational branching. We eliminate rotational branching by employing a quasicycling type transition in conjunction with magnetic field remixing of dark Zeeman sublevels. We observe cycling fluorescence and deflection through radiative force of an SrF molecular beam using this scheme. With straightforward improvements our scheme promises to allow more than photon scatters, possibly enabling the direct laser cooling of SrF.
- Received 13 September 2009
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.103.223001
©2009 American Physical Society
Synopsis
May cooler molecules prevail
Published 30 November 2009
Improved optical techniques may permit direct cooling of molecules to form ultracold gases, instead of cooling the atoms first.
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