Related papers: High-Resolution Laser Spectroscopy of a Functional…
We report the production and spectroscopic characterization of strontium (I) phenoxide ($\mathrm{SrOC}_6\mathrm{H}_5$, or SrOPh) and variants featuring electron-withdrawing groups designed to suppress vibrational excitation during…
We study optical cycling in the polar free radical calcium monohydroxide (CaOH) and establish an experimental path towards scattering $\sim$$10^4$ photons. We report rovibronic branching ratio measurements with precision at the…
Calcium monohydroxide radical (CaOH) is receiving an increasing amount of attention from the astrophysics community as it is expected to be present in the atmospheres of hot rocky super-Earth exoplanets as well as interstellar and…
We demonstrate optical cycling and sub-Doppler laser cooling of a cryogenic buffer-gas beam of calcium monohydride (CaH) molecules. We measure vibrational branching ratios for laser cooling transitions for both excited electronic states A…
We demonstrate a 1D magneto-optical trap of the polar free radical calcium monohydroxide (CaOH). A quasi-closed cycling transition is established to scatter $\sim 10^3$ photons per molecule, predominantly limited by interaction time. This…
We report direct laser cooling of a symmetric top molecule, reducing the transverse temperature of a beam of calcium monomethoxide (CaOCH$_3$) to $1.8\pm0.7$ mK while addressing two distinct nuclear spin isomers. These results open a path…
Barium monohydride (BaH) is an attractive candidate for extending laser cooling and trapping techniques to diatomic hydrides. The apparatus and high-resolution optical spectroscopy presented here demonstrate progress toward this goal. A…
We present the first experimental demonstration of radiation pressure force deflection and direct laser cooling for barium monohydride (BaH) molecules resulting from multiple photon scattering. Despite a small recoil velocity (2.7 mm/s) and…
Only bosonic molecular species have been directly laser cooled to date, primarily due to an abundance of bosonic isotopes in nature and to their simpler hyperfine structure. Fermionic molecules provide new opportunities for ultracold…
We describe a laser spectroscopic study of ytterbium monomethoxide, YbOCH$_3$, a species of interest to searches for time-reversal symmetry violation using laser-cooled molecules. We report measurements of vibrational structure in the…
Aluminium monofluoride (AlF) is a promising candidate for laser cooling and trapping at high densities. We show efficient production of AlF in a bright, pulsed cryogenic buffer gas beam, and demonstrate rapid optical cycling on the Q…
Molecular ions can be held in a chain of laser-cooled atomic ions by sympathetic cooling. This system is ideal for performing high-precision molecular spectroscopy with applications in astrochemistry and fundamental physics. Here we show…
We demonstrate the coherent optical bichromatic force on a molecule, the polar free radical strontium monohydroxide (SrOH). A dual-frequency retro-reflected laser beam addressing the $\tilde{X}^2\Sigma^+\leftrightarrow\tilde{A}^2\Pi_{1/2}$…
Hyperfine-structures of highly charged ions (HCIs) are favourable spectroscopic targets for exploring fundamental physics as well as nuclear properties. Recent proposals of HCI atomic clocks highlight their importance, especially for…
Rapid and repeated photon cycling has enabled precision metrology and the development of quantum information systems using a variety of atoms and simple molecules. Extending optical cycling to structurally complex molecules would provide…
Currently, there is great interest in laser cooling of barium monofluoride (BaF) molecules for precision tests of fundamental symmetries. We use high-resolution absorption spectroscopy to characterize several as yet imprecisely known…
Molecular laser cooling and trapping requires addressing all spontaneous decays to excited vibrational states that occur at the $\gtrsim 10^{-4} - 10^{-5}$ level, which is accomplished by driving repumping transitions out of these states.…
The calcium monohydroxide radical (CaOH) is an important astrophysical molecule relevant to cool stars and rocky exoplanets, amongst other astronomical environments. Here, we present a consistent set of highly accurate rovibronic…
We investigated the optical cycling effect of the $\mathrm{X}^2\Sigma(v=0,\ N=1^-) - \mathrm{A}^2\Pi_{1/2}(v'=0,\ J'=1/2^+)$ band of MgF molecules, specifically the $\mathrm{P_1/Q_{12}(1)}$ transition, which serves as the main transition in…
Optical cycling transitions and direct laser cooling have recently been demonstrated for a number of alkaline-earth dimers and trimer molecules. This is made possible by diagonal Franck-Condon factors between the vibrational modes of the…