Stuttgart 2012 – scientific programme
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MO: Fachverband Molekülphysik
MO 19: Cold Molecules II
MO 19.5: Talk
Thursday, March 15, 2012, 15:15–15:30, V38.03
A traveling-wave Zeeman decelerator — •Dongdong Zhang1, Jean-Paul Cromières2, Henrik Haak1, Gerard Meijer1, and Nicolas Vanhaecke1 — 1Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Faradayweg 4-6, 14195 Berlin, Germany — 2Laboratoire Aimé Cotton, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay, France
A prominent, versatile method to produce cold molecules relies on the supersonic expansion of a seeded molecular gas, followed by a deceleration of the molecules of the so-formed beam. While Stark deceleration allows one to manipulate the longitudinal motion of polar molecules of a supersonic beam with time-dependent, inhomogeneous electric fields, Zeeman deceleration uses time-dependent, inhomogeneous magnetic fields to control the motion of paramagnetic molecules [1]. Here we report on an approach to the magnetic deceleration of supersonic beams, based on the generation of a propagating wave of magnetic field [2]. The fields provide real-time tri-dimensional confinement of the particles in low-field-seeking states, in analogy with the traveling-wave Stark decelerator [3]. Our Zeeman decelerator avoids losses of molecules even at low forward velocities, prevents non-adiabatic transitions, and ideally matches a static magnetic trap.
[1] N. Vanhaecke, U. Meier, M. Andrist, B. H. Meier, and F. Merkt, Phys. Rev. A 75, 031402(R) (2007).
[2] A. Trimeche, M. N. Bera, J.-P. Cromières, J. Robert, and N. Vanhaecke, Eur. Phys. J. D, 65, 263 (2011).
[3] A. Osterwalder, S. A. Meek, G. Hammer, H. Haak, and G. Meijer, Phys. Rev. A 81, 051401(R) (2010)