Related papers: Cold heteronuclear atom-ion collisions
Cold chemical reactions between laser-cooled Ca^+ ions and Rb atoms were studied in an ion-atom hybrid trap. Reaction rate constants were determined in the range of collision energies <E_{coll}>/k_B = 20 mK-20 K. The lowest energies were…
We observed elastic collisions between laser-cooled fermionic lithium atoms and calcium ions at the energy range from 100 mK to 3 K. Lithium atoms in an optical-dipole trap were transported to the center of the ion trap using an optical…
Ultra-cold atom-ion mixtures are gaining increasing interest due to their potential applications in quantum chemistry, quantum computing and many-body physics. Here, we studied the dynamics of a single ground-state cooled ion during few, to…
We discuss theoretically ion-atom collisions at low energy and predict the possibility of formation of cold molecular ion by photoassociation. We present results on radiative homo- and hetero-nuclear atom-ion cold collisions that reveal…
We report on a study of cold reactive collisions between sympathetically-cooled molecular ions and laser-cooled atoms in an ion-atom hybrid trap. Chemical reactions were studied at average collision energies <Ecoll>/k > 20 mK, about two…
We have investigated cold ionizing heteronuclear collisions in dilute mixtures of metastable (2 3S1) 3He and 4He atoms, extending our previous work on the analogous homonuclear collisions [R. J. W. Stas et al., PRA 73, 032713 (2006)]. A…
Sympathetic cooling is the process of energy exchange between a system and a colder bath. We investigate this fundamental process in an atom-ion experiment where the system is composed of a single ion, trapped in a radio-frequency Paul…
The cross section of a given process fundamentally quantifies the probability for that given process to occur. In the quantum regime of low energies, the cross section can vary strongly with collision energy due to quantum effects. Here, we…
We demonstrate a double-trap system well suited to study cold collisions between trapped ions and trapped atoms. Using Yb$^+$ ions confined in a Paul trap and Yb atoms in a magneto-optical trap, we investigate charge-exchange collisions of…
We investigate the energy dependence and the internal-state dependence of the charge-exchange collision cross sections in a mixture of $^6$Li atoms and $^{40}$Ca$^+$ ions in the collision energy range from 0.2 mK to 1 K. Deliberately…
We have experimentally explored a novel possibility to study exoergic cold atomic collisions. Trapping of small countable atom numbers in a shallow magneto-optical trap and monitoring of their temporal dynamics allows us to directly observe…
Measurements of interactions between cold molecules and ultracold atoms can allow for a detailed understanding of fundamental collision processes. These measurements can be done using various experimental geometries including where both…
Interactions between cold ions and atoms have been proposed for use in implementing quantum gates\cite{Idziaszek2007}, probing quantum gases\cite{Sherkunov2009}, observing novel charge-transport dynamics\cite{Cote2000}, and sympathetically…
Collisions with cold particles can dissipate the energy of a hot particle and therefore be exploited as a cooling mechanism. Kinetics teaches us that for a particle to be cooled down by several orders of magnitude, it will typically take…
We demonstrated sympathetic cooling of a single ion in a buffer gas of ultracold atoms with small mass. Efficient collisional cooling was realized by suppressing collision-induced heating. We attempt to explain the experimental results with…
Heating of trapped ion clouds by interactions with free electrons crossing the trapping potential was observed. A model describing such process was proposed and discussed. The presented approach predicts two effects: pushing and heating of…
We present a scheme to embed molecular anions in a gas of ultracold rubidium atoms as a route towards the preparation of cold molecular ions by collisional cooling with ultracold atoms. Associative detachment as an important loss process in…
Ultra-cold RbCs molecules in high-lying vibrational levels of the a$^3\Sigma^+$ ground electronic state are confined in an optical trap. Inelastic collision rates of these molecules with both Rb and Cs atoms are determined for individual…
Great advances in precision quantum measurement have been achieved with trapped ions and atomic gases at the lowest possible temperatures. These successes have inspired ideas to merge the two systems. In this way one can study the unique…
Collisions between cold molecules are essential for studying fundamental aspects of quantum chemistry, and may enable formation of quantum degenerate molecular matter by evaporative cooling. However, collisions between trapped, naturally…