Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

arXiv:1602.08026 · Physical Review Letters

Enhancement of Ultracold Molecule Formation Using Shaped Nanosecond Frequency Chirps

J. L. Carini, Shimshon Kallush, Ronnie Kosloff, P. L. Gould

Published Oct 21, 2015• 36 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We demonstrate that judicious shaping of a nanosecond-time-scale frequency chirp can dramatically enhance the formation rate of ultracold (87)Rb(2) molecules. Starting with ultracold (87)Rb atoms, we apply pulses of frequency-chirped light to first photoassociate the atoms into excited molecules and then, later in the chirp, deexcite these molecules into a high vibrational level of the lowest triplet state a (3)Σ(u)(+). The enhancing chirp shape passes through the absorption and stimulated emission transitions relatively slowly, thus increasing their adiabaticity, but jumps quickly between them to minimize the effects of spontaneous emission. Comparisons with quantum simulations for various chirp shapes support this enhancement mechanism.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.115.173003

Related papers

Efficient Formation of Ultracold Molecules with Chirped Nanosecond Pulses

J. L. Carini, Shimshon Kallush, Ronnie Kosloff +1 more

We describe experiments and associated quantum simulations involving the production of ultracold (87)Rb2 molecules with nanosecond pulses of frequency-chirped light. With appropriate chirp parameters, the formation is dominated by coherent processes. For a positive chirp, excited molecules are produced by photoassociation early in the chirp, and then transferred into high vibrational levels of the lowest triplet state by stimulated emission later in the chirp. Generally good agreement is seen between the data and the simulations. Shaping of the chirp can lead to a significant enhancement of the formation rate. Further improvements using higher intensities and different intermediate states are predicted.

arXiv:1510.04672•The Journal of Physical Chemistry A•Dec 11, 2015•16 citations

Enhancement of ultracold molecule formation by local control in the nanosecond regime

J. L. Carini, Shimshon Kallush, Ronnie Kosloff +1 more

We describe quantum simulations of ultracold 87 Rb 2 molecule formation using photoassociation (PA) with nanosecond-time-scale pulses of frequency chirped light. In particular, we compare the case of a linear chirp to one where the frequency evolution is optimized by local control (LC) of the phase, and find that LC can provide a significant enhancement. The resulting optimal frequency evolution corresponds to a rapid jump from the PA absorption resonance to a downward transition to a bound level of the lowest triplet state. We also consider the case of two frequencies and investigate interference effects. The assumed chirp parameters should be achievable with nanosecond pulse shaping techniques and are predicted to provide a significant enhancement over recent experiments with linear chirps.

New Journal of Physics•Feb 18, 2015•6 citations

Production of ultracold molecules with chirped nanosecond pulses: Evidence for coherent effects

J. L. Carini, J. A. Pechkis, C. E. Rogers +3 more

We use frequency-chirped light on the nanosecond time scale to produce ultracold ${}^{87}$Rb${}_{2}$ molecules in the lowest triplet state via the process of photoassociation. Comparing to quantum simulations of the molecular formation, we conclude that coherent stimulated emission plays an important role and is primarily responsible for the significant difference observed between positive and negative chirps.

arXiv:1210.6004•Physical Review A•Jan 2, 2013•17 citations

Production of Ultracold Molecules with Chirped Nanosecond-Time-scale Pulses

J. L. Carini, Shimshon Kallush, Ronnie Kosloff +1 more

We present results on the effects of nanosecond-timescale frequency-chirped laser light on the formation of 87Rb2 ultracold ground-state molecules. We investigate these effects through photoassociation (PA) experiments and quantum mechanical simulations. The PA experiments show that at higher intensities, the positive chirps have a higher formation rate than the unchirped or negative linear chirps. The quantum mechanical simulations reveal the mechanism responsible for this enhancement. Contributions from stimulated emission cause the positive chirp to be the most efficient for molecule formation.

Bulletin of the American Physical Society•Jun 9, 2015•1 citation

Directional quantum-controlled chemistry: Generating aligned ultracold molecules via photoassociation

Shimshon Kallush, J. L. Carini, P. L. Gould +1 more

Photoassociation of ultracold atoms with pulsed laser light is shown to lead to alignment of the product molecules along the excitation laser polarization axis. We theoretically investigate pulsed two-photon photoassociation of $^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ atoms into a specific weakly bound level of the $a{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Sigma}}}_{u}^{+}$ metastable electronic state and find both stationary and time-dependent field-free alignment. Although a transform-limited pulse yields significant alignment, a frequency-chirped pulse dramatically enhances the ultracold molecular formation rate at the cost of a slight decrease in the alignment. Employing multiple pulses synchronized with the vibrational and rotational periods leads to coherent enhancement of both population and alignment of the target state. Inclusion of the rotational degree of freedom in the model gives rise to processes with multiple quantum paths, which lead to quantum effects such as interference and coherence revivals.

arXiv:1706.06834•Physical Review A•Nov 10, 2017•9 citations

Photoassociation and coherent transient dynamics in the interaction of ultracold rubidium atoms with shaped femtosecond pulses - I. Experiment

Wenzel Salzmann, Terry Mullins, Simone Götz +10 more

We experimentally investigate various processes present in the photoassociative interaction of an ultracold atomic sample with shaped femtosecond laser pulses. We demonstrate the photoassociation of pairs of rubidium atoms into electronically excited, bound molecular states using spectrally cut femtosecond laser pulses tuned below the rubidium D1 or D2 asymptote. Time-resolved pump-probe spectra reveal coherent oscillations of the molecular formation rate, which are due to coherent transient dynamics in the electronic excitation. The oscillation frequency corresponds to the detun-ing of the spectral cut position to the asymptotic transition frequency of the rubidium D1 or D2 lines, respectively. Measurements of the molecular photoassociation signal as a function of the pulse energy reveal a non-linear dependence and indicate a non-perturbative excitation process. Chirping the association laser pulse allowed us to change the phase of the coherent transients. Furthermore, a signature for molecules in the electronic ground state is found, which is attributed to molecule formation by femtosecond photoassociation followed by spontaneous decay. In a subsequent article [A. Merli et al., submitted] quantum mechanical calculations are presented, which compare well with the experimental data and reveal further details about the observed coherent transient dynamics.

arXiv:0903.4549•Mar 26, 2009•0 citations
We demonstrate that judicious shaping of a nanosecond-time-scale frequency chirp can dramatically enhance the formation rate of ultracold (87)Rb(2) molecules. Starting with ultracold (87)Rb atoms, we apply pulses of frequency-chirped light to first photoassociate the atoms into excited molecules and then, later in the chirp, deexcite these molecules into a high vibrational level of the lowest triplet state a (3)Σ(u)(+). The enhancing chirp shape passes through the absorption and stimulated emission transitions relatively slowly, thus increasing their adiabaticity, but jumps quickly between them to minimize the effects of spontaneous emission. Comparisons with quantum simulations for various chirp shapes support this enhancement mechanism.
We describe experiments and associated quantum simulations involving the production of ultracold (87)Rb2 molecules with nanosecond pulses of frequency-chirped light. With appropriate chirp parameters, the formation is dominated by coherent processes. For a positive chirp, excited molecules are produced by photoassociation early in the chirp, and then transferred into high vibrational levels of the lowest triplet state by stimulated emission later in the chirp. Generally good agreement is seen between the data and the simulations. Shaping of the chirp can lead to a significant enhancement of the formation rate. Further improvements using higher intensities and different intermediate states are predicted.
We describe quantum simulations of ultracold 87 Rb 2 molecule formation using photoassociation (PA) with nanosecond-time-scale pulses of frequency chirped light. In particular, we compare the case of a linear chirp to one where the frequency evolution is optimized by local control (LC) of the phase, and find that LC can provide a significant enhancement. The resulting optimal frequency evolution corresponds to a rapid jump from the PA absorption resonance to a downward transition to a bound level of the lowest triplet state. We also consider the case of two frequencies and investigate interference effects. The assumed chirp parameters should be achievable with nanosecond pulse shaping techniques and are predicted to provide a significant enhancement over recent experiments with linear chirps.
We use frequency-chirped light on the nanosecond time scale to produce ultracold 87{}^{87}87Rb2{}_{2}2​ molecules in the lowest triplet state via the process of photoassociation. Comparing to quantum simulations of the molecular formation, we conclude that coherent stimulated emission plays an important role and is primarily responsible for the significant difference observed between positive and negative chirps.
We present results on the effects of nanosecond-timescale frequency-chirped laser light on the formation of 87Rb2 ultracold ground-state molecules. We investigate these effects through photoassociation (PA) experiments and quantum mechanical simulations. The PA experiments show that at higher intensities, the positive chirps have a higher formation rate than the unchirped or negative linear chirps. The quantum mechanical simulations reveal the mechanism responsible for this enhancement. Contributions from stimulated emission cause the positive chirp to be the most efficient for molecule formation.
Photoassociation of ultracold atoms with pulsed laser light is shown to lead to alignment of the product molecules along the excitation laser polarization axis. We theoretically investigate pulsed two-photon photoassociation of 87Rb^{87}\mathrm{Rb}87Rb atoms into a specific weakly bound level of the $a{\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}}^{3}{\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Sigma}}}_{u}^{+}$ metastable electronic state and find both stationary and time-dependent field-free alignment. Although a transform-limited pulse yields significant alignment, a frequency-chirped pulse dramatically enhances the ultracold molecular formation rate at the cost of a slight decrease in the alignment. Employing multiple pulses synchronized with the vibrational and rotational periods leads to coherent enhancement of both population and alignment of the target state. Inclusion of the rotational degree of freedom in the model gives rise to processes with multiple quantum paths, which lead to quantum effects such as interference and coherence revivals.
We experimentally investigate various processes present in the photoassociative interaction of an ultracold atomic sample with shaped femtosecond laser pulses. We demonstrate the photoassociation of pairs of rubidium atoms into electronically excited, bound molecular states using spectrally cut femtosecond laser pulses tuned below the rubidium D1 or D2 asymptote. Time-resolved pump-probe spectra reveal coherent oscillations of the molecular formation rate, which are due to coherent transient dynamics in the electronic excitation. The oscillation frequency corresponds to the detun-ing of the spectral cut position to the asymptotic transition frequency of the rubidium D1 or D2 lines, respectively. Measurements of the molecular photoassociation signal as a function of the pulse energy reveal a non-linear dependence and indicate a non-perturbative excitation process. Chirping the association laser pulse allowed us to change the phase of the coherent transients. Furthermore, a signature for molecules in the electronic ground state is found, which is attributed to molecule formation by femtosecond photoassociation followed by spontaneous decay. In a subsequent article [A. Merli et al., submitted] quantum mechanical calculations are presented, which compare well with the experimental data and reveal further details about the observed coherent transient dynamics.