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:1611.08893 · Europhysics Letters (EPL)

Nondestructive detection of polar molecules via Rydberg atoms

M. Zeppenfeld

Published Apr 1, 2017• 25 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

A highly sensitive, general, and preferably nondestructive technique to detect polar molecules would greatly advance a number of fields, in particular quantum science with cold and ultracold molecules. Here, we propose using resonant energy transfer between molecules and Rydberg atoms to detect molecules. Based on an energy transfer cross-section of > 10 −6 cm 2 for sufficiently low collision energies, a near unit efficiency non-destructive detection of basically any polar molecule species in a well-defined internal state should be possible.

DOI
10.1209/0295-5075/118/13002

Related papers

Rydberg Atom-Enabled Spectroscopy of Polar Molecules via Förster Resonance Energy Transfer

Sabrina Patsch, Martin Zeppenfeld, Christiane P. Koch

Non-radiative energy transfer between a Rydberg atom and a polar molecule can be controlled by a static electric field. Here, we show how to exploit this control for state-resolved, non-destructive detection and spectroscopy of the molecules, where the lineshape reflects the type of molecular transition. Using the example of ammonia, we identify the conditions for collision-mediated spectroscopy in terms of the required electric field strengths, relative velocities, and molecular densities. Rydberg atom-enabled spectroscopy is feasible with current experimental technology, providing a versatile detection method as a basic building block for applications of polar molecules in quantum technologies and chemical reaction studies.

arXiv:2205.04327•The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters•Nov 11, 2022•10 citations

Simultaneous nondestructive measurement of many polar molecules using Rydberg atoms

Jeremy T. Young, Kang-Kuen Ni, Alexey V. Gorshkov

Tweezer arrays of polar molecules present new opportunities for quantum science and quantum information. However, a major challenge, especially in bialkali molecule platforms, is the fact that current measurement schemes for the internal states are destructive. In this work, we present a method to use Rydberg atoms to nondestructively measure the internal state of a molecular qubit. We achieve this via microwave dressing of both molecules and Rydberg atoms, allowing us to tune the interactions so that there are minimal Rydberg-Rydberg interactions and many measurements can take place simultaneously. We consider two experimentally-motivated examples of detecting $^{23}$Na$^{133}$Cs and $^{87}$Rb$^{133}$Cs with $^{133}$Cs atoms. Finally, we discuss several strategies for mitigating various sources of crosstalk.

quant-pharXiv:2601.08921•Jan 15, 2026•0 citations

Electric-field-controlled resonant energy transfer between polar ground-state molecules and highly-excited Rydberg atoms

S. D. Hogan

The large electric dipole moments associated with transitions between Rydberg states of atoms or molecules, make them ideal model systems with which to study Förster resonance energy transfer in collisions with other Rydberg atoms or molecules, or with polar ground-state molecules [1,2]. The sensitivity of high Rydberg states to electric fields allows these energy transfer processes to be tuned thorough resonance by exploiting the Stark effect. In this talk, I will describe recent experiments in which we have observed the resonant transfer of energy from the ground-state inversion sublevels in ammonia, to helium atoms in triplet Rydberg states with principal quantum numbers between 38 and 43. The experiments were performed at translational temperatures below 1 K in seeded, pulsed supersonic beams [3]. Electric fields up to ~10 V/cm were used to tune transitions between selected Rydberg states into resonance with the transitions between the inversion sublevels. Resonant energy transfer was identified by Rydberg-state-selective electric-field ionisation. The experimental data exhibit quantum-state-dependent resonance widths that range from 200 to 700 MHz and, in general, reduce as the value of the principal quantum number is increased. Comparison with the results of numerical calculations of the Rydberg energy-level structure and transition moments, shows a dependence of the measured widths on the electric dipole transition moments of the Rydberg-Rydberg transitions. These results are of particular interest, e.g., for applications in coherent control and quantum sensing [4-6], and in the study of low-temperature ion-molecule reactions performed within the orbit of a Rydberg electron [7]. [1] T. F. Gallagher, Phys. Rep. 210, 319 (1992) [2] F. B. Dunning, S. Buathong, Int. Rev. Phys. Chem. 37, 287 (2018) [3] K. Gawlas and S. D. Hogan, J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 11, 83 (2020) [4] M. Zeppenfeld, Euro. Phys. Lett. 118, 13002 (2017). [5] E. Kuznetsova, S. T. Rittenhouse, H. R. Sadeghpour, and S. F. Yelin, Phys. Rev. A 94, 032325 (2016). [6] E. Kuznetsova, S. T. Rittenhouse, H. R. Sadeghpour, and S. F. Yelin, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 13, 17115 (2011). [7] K. Höveler, J. Deiglmayr, J. A. Agner, H. Schmutz and F. Merkt, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 23, 2676 (2021).

SPIE Nanophotonics•May 24, 2022•0 citations

Probing van der Waals interactions and detecting polar molecules by Förster-resonance energy transfer with Rydberg atoms at temperatures below 100 mK

Junwen Zou, S. D. Hogan

Electric-field-controlled F\"orster-resonance energy transfer (FRET) between Rydberg helium (He) atoms and ground-state ammonia (${\mathrm{NH}}_{3}$) molecules has been studied at translational temperatures below 100 mK. The experiments were performed in an intrabeam collision apparatus with pulsed supersonic beams of ${\mathrm{NH}}_{3}$ seeded in He. A range of F\"orster resonances, between triplet Rydberg states in He with principal quantum numbers of 38, 39, and 40, and the inversion intervals in ${\mathrm{NH}}_{3}$ were investigated. Resonance widths as low as $100\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}20$ MHz were observed for Rydberg-Rydberg transitions with electric dipole transition moments of 3270 D. These widths result from binary collisions at a mean center-of-mass speed of $19.3\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2.6$ m/s. For transitions in which the initially prepared Rydberg states were strongly polarized, with large induced static electric dipole moments, van der Waals interactions between the collision partners increased the resonance widths to $\ensuremath{\sim}750$ MHz. From measurements of the rate of FRET for the narrowest resonances observed, a density of ${\mathrm{NH}}_{3}$ of $(9.4\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.3)\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{9}\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$ in the upper ground-state inversion sublevel in the interaction region of the apparatus was determined nondestructively.

arXiv:2211.09880•Physical Review A•Oct 20, 2022•3 citations

Studies of ultra-low energy electron-molecule collisions using very-high-n Rydberg atoms

M. T. Frey, Xiaohui Ling, K. A. Smith +1 more

Potassium atoms in selected high-lying np Rydberg states (80 {<=} n {<=} 400) are being used as a tool to examine electron-polar molecule collisions at ultra-low energies ({approximately}80 {mu}eV - 1 meV). This energy regime has not been investigated previously and is of interest because the corresponding electron de Broglie wavelength is large, {approximately}1300 - 330 {Angstrom}, and because the collision time is comparable to the period of molecular rotation. A variety of target molecules has been studied, including simple rotors such as HF, and more complex species such as NH{sub 3}, CH{sub 3}I, CH{sub 2}Br{sub 2} and C{sub 6}H{sub 5}NO{sub 2}. These targets encompass a range of dipole moments and rotational behavior, but analysis of the data shows that in each case the cross section {sigma}({epsilon}) for rotationally-inelastic electron-polar molecule scattering varies approximately as 1/{epsilon} where {epsilon} is the electron energy. Such threshold behavior is not predicted by the Born approximation and possible reasons for this discrepancy will be discussed. In the case of NH{sub 3}, the data show that near-resonant energy transfer associated with transitions between different inversion levels is an important process leading to collisional state changing.

Bulletin of the American Physical Society•May 1, 1993•0 citations

Observation of Resonant Monopole-Dipole Energy Transfer between Rydberg Atoms and Polar Molecules

Junwen Zou, Reuben R. W. Wang, Rosario González‐Férez +2 more

Resonant energy transfer (RET) between the equal parity 1s65s ^{3}S_{1} and 1s66s ^{3}S_{1} Rydberg levels in helium has been observed in low-temperature (∼80 mK) collisions with ammonia molecules that undergo inversion transitions in their X ^{1}A_{1} ground electronic state. This hybrid Rydberg-atom-polar-molecule resonant energy transfer represents a monopole-dipole energy exchange reaction that necessarily requires spatial overlap of the Rydberg-electron and molecular wave functions. Calculations that account explicitly for the charge-dipole interaction between the Rydberg electron and the molecule provide a quantitative explanation of the observations. Total parity is conserved in the reaction through the mixing of collisional angular momentum in the atom-molecule complex. This work opens opportunities to expand the toolbox for quantum science with charge-dipole-mediated energy exchange in hybrid atom-polar-molecule platforms.

arXiv:2509.21582•Physical Review Letters•Feb 12, 2026•0 citations
A highly sensitive, general, and preferably nondestructive technique to detect polar molecules would greatly advance a number of fields, in particular quantum science with cold and ultracold molecules. Here, we propose using resonant energy transfer between molecules and Rydberg atoms to detect molecules. Based on an energy transfer cross-section of > 10 −6 cm 2 for sufficiently low collision energies, a near unit efficiency non-destructive detection of basically any polar molecule species in a well-defined internal state should be possible.
Non-radiative energy transfer between a Rydberg atom and a polar molecule can be controlled by a static electric field. Here, we show how to exploit this control for state-resolved, non-destructive detection and spectroscopy of the molecules, where the lineshape reflects the type of molecular transition. Using the example of ammonia, we identify the conditions for collision-mediated spectroscopy in terms of the required electric field strengths, relative velocities, and molecular densities. Rydberg atom-enabled spectroscopy is feasible with current experimental technology, providing a versatile detection method as a basic building block for applications of polar molecules in quantum technologies and chemical reaction studies.
Tweezer arrays of polar molecules present new opportunities for quantum science and quantum information. However, a major challenge, especially in bialkali molecule platforms, is the fact that current measurement schemes for the internal states are destructive. In this work, we present a method to use Rydberg atoms to nondestructively measure the internal state of a molecular qubit. We achieve this via microwave dressing of both molecules and Rydberg atoms, allowing us to tune the interactions so that there are minimal Rydberg-Rydberg interactions and many measurements can take place simultaneously. We consider two experimentally-motivated examples of detecting 23^{23}23Na133^{133}133Cs and 87^{87}87Rb133^{133}133Cs with 133^{133}133Cs atoms. Finally, we discuss several strategies for mitigating various sources of crosstalk.
The large electric dipole moments associated with transitions between Rydberg states of atoms or molecules, make them ideal model systems with which to study Förster resonance energy transfer in collisions with other Rydberg atoms or molecules, or with polar ground-state molecules [1,2]. The sensitivity of high Rydberg states to electric fields allows these energy transfer processes to be tuned thorough resonance by exploiting the Stark effect. In this talk, I will describe recent experiments in which we have observed the resonant transfer of energy from the ground-state inversion sublevels in ammonia, to helium atoms in triplet Rydberg states with principal quantum numbers between 38 and 43. The experiments were performed at translational temperatures below 1 K in seeded, pulsed supersonic beams [3]. Electric fields up to ~10 V/cm were used to tune transitions between selected Rydberg states into resonance with the transitions between the inversion sublevels. Resonant energy transfer was identified by Rydberg-state-selective electric-field ionisation. The experimental data exhibit quantum-state-dependent resonance widths that range from 200 to 700 MHz and, in general, reduce as the value of the principal quantum number is increased. Comparison with the results of numerical calculations of the Rydberg energy-level structure and transition moments, shows a dependence of the measured widths on the electric dipole transition moments of the Rydberg-Rydberg transitions. These results are of particular interest, e.g., for applications in coherent control and quantum sensing [4-6], and in the study of low-temperature ion-molecule reactions performed within the orbit of a Rydberg electron [7]. [1] T. F. Gallagher, Phys. Rep. 210, 319 (1992) [2] F. B. Dunning, S. Buathong, Int. Rev. Phys. Chem. 37, 287 (2018) [3] K. Gawlas and S. D. Hogan, J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 11, 83 (2020) [4] M. Zeppenfeld, Euro. Phys. Lett. 118, 13002 (2017). [5] E. Kuznetsova, S. T. Rittenhouse, H. R. Sadeghpour, and S. F. Yelin, Phys. Rev. A 94, 032325 (2016). [6] E. Kuznetsova, S. T. Rittenhouse, H. R. Sadeghpour, and S. F. Yelin, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 13, 17115 (2011). [7] K. Höveler, J. Deiglmayr, J. A. Agner, H. Schmutz and F. Merkt, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 23, 2676 (2021).
Electric-field-controlled F\"orster-resonance energy transfer (FRET) between Rydberg helium (He) atoms and ground-state ammonia (NH3{\mathrm{NH}}_{3}NH3​) molecules has been studied at translational temperatures below 100 mK. The experiments were performed in an intrabeam collision apparatus with pulsed supersonic beams of NH3{\mathrm{NH}}_{3}NH3​ seeded in He. A range of F\"orster resonances, between triplet Rydberg states in He with principal quantum numbers of 38, 39, and 40, and the inversion intervals in NH3{\mathrm{NH}}_{3}NH3​ were investigated. Resonance widths as low as $100\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}20$ MHz were observed for Rydberg-Rydberg transitions with electric dipole transition moments of 3270 D. These widths result from binary collisions at a mean center-of-mass speed of $19.3\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}2.6$ m/s. For transitions in which the initially prepared Rydberg states were strongly polarized, with large induced static electric dipole moments, van der Waals interactions between the collision partners increased the resonance widths to $\ensuremath{\sim}750$ MHz. From measurements of the rate of FRET for the narrowest resonances observed, a density of NH3{\mathrm{NH}}_{3}NH3​ of $(9.4\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.3)\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{9}\phantom{\rule{0.28em}{0ex}}{\mathrm{cm}}^{\ensuremath{-}3}$ in the upper ground-state inversion sublevel in the interaction region of the apparatus was determined nondestructively.
Potassium atoms in selected high-lying np Rydberg states (80 {<=} n {<=} 400) are being used as a tool to examine electron-polar molecule collisions at ultra-low energies ({approximately}80 {mu}eV - 1 meV). This energy regime has not been investigated previously and is of interest because the corresponding electron de Broglie wavelength is large, {approximately}1300 - 330 {Angstrom}, and because the collision time is comparable to the period of molecular rotation. A variety of target molecules has been studied, including simple rotors such as HF, and more complex species such as NH{sub 3}, CH{sub 3}I, CH{sub 2}Br{sub 2} and C{sub 6}H{sub 5}NO{sub 2}. These targets encompass a range of dipole moments and rotational behavior, but analysis of the data shows that in each case the cross section {sigma}({epsilon}) for rotationally-inelastic electron-polar molecule scattering varies approximately as 1/{epsilon} where {epsilon} is the electron energy. Such threshold behavior is not predicted by the Born approximation and possible reasons for this discrepancy will be discussed. In the case of NH{sub 3}, the data show that near-resonant energy transfer associated with transitions between different inversion levels is an important process leading to collisional state changing.
Resonant energy transfer (RET) between the equal parity 1s65s ^{3}S_{1} and 1s66s ^{3}S_{1} Rydberg levels in helium has been observed in low-temperature (∼80 mK) collisions with ammonia molecules that undergo inversion transitions in their X ^{1}A_{1} ground electronic state. This hybrid Rydberg-atom-polar-molecule resonant energy transfer represents a monopole-dipole energy exchange reaction that necessarily requires spatial overlap of the Rydberg-electron and molecular wave functions. Calculations that account explicitly for the charge-dipole interaction between the Rydberg electron and the molecule provide a quantitative explanation of the observations. Total parity is conserved in the reaction through the mixing of collisional angular momentum in the atom-molecule complex. This work opens opportunities to expand the toolbox for quantum science with charge-dipole-mediated energy exchange in hybrid atom-polar-molecule platforms.