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arXiv:2407.09907 · Physical Review A

Thermal emission of strontium in a cryogenic buffer-gas beam source

Andrew Winnicki, Zack Lasner, John M. Doyle

Published Nov 12, 2024• 1 citation
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Abstract

We demonstrate the production of cold atomic strontium (Sr) and strontium-containing molecules (SrOH) in a cryogenic buffer-gas beam source via direct heating of strontium oxide (SrO) with 30 mJ laser pulses several milliseconds long. Here, $3.7(2)\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{14}$ Sr atoms are released, which represents a factor of 7 increase in atomic production per pulse compared to nanosecond-scale ablation laser pulses. A peak atomic density of $1.93(6)\ifmmode\times\else\texttimes\fi{}{10}^{12}$ atoms/${\mathrm{cm}}^{3}$ is achieved, which corresponds to a factor of 2 increase relative to ablation. We further propose extensions of this method to other atomic and molecular species.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.110.052804

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We demonstrate and characterize a high-flux beam source for cold, slow atoms or molecules. The desired species is vaporized using laser ablation, then cooled by thermalization in a cryogenic cell of buffer gas. The beam is formed by particles exiting a hole in the buffer gas cell. We characterize the properties of the beam (flux, forward velocity, temperature) for both an atom (Na) and a molecule (PbO) under varying buffer gas density, and discuss conditions for optimizing these beam parameters. Our source compares favorably to existing techniques of beam formation, for a variety of applications.
We demonstrate and characterize a high-flux beam source for cold, slow atoms or molecules. The desired species is vaporized using laser ablation, then cooled by thermalization in a cryogenic cell of buffer gas. The beam is formed by particles exiting a hole in the buffer gas cell. We characterize the properties of the beam (flux, forward velocity, temperature) for both an atom (Na) and a molecule (PbO) under varying buffer gas density, and discuss conditions for optimizing these beam parameters. Our source compares favorably to existing techniques of beam formation, for a variety of applications.
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Laser cooling by collisional redistribution of radiation has been successfully applied in the past for cooling dense atomic gases. Here we report on progress of work aiming at the demonstration of redistribution laser cooling in a molecular gas. The candidate molecule strontium monohydride is produced by laser ablation of strontium dihydride in a pressurized noble gas atmosphere. The composition of the ablation plasma plume is analyzed by measuring its emission spectrum. The dynamics of SrH molecular density following the ablation laser pulse is studied as a function of the buffer gas pressure and the laser intensity.
We designed, demonstrated, and characterized a strontium atom source based on fiber-based pulsed laser ablation. By using a commercially available miniature lens system for focusing nanosecond pulsed laser of up to 225 μ J delivered through a multimode fiber of 105 μm core, we ablate a SrTiO3 target and generate a jet of neutral strontium atoms, though our method can be applied to other transparent ablation targets containing materials under concern. Our device endures 6000 cycles of pulse delivery and irradiation without noticeable damage on the fiber facets and lenses. The generated strontium beam is characterized with a spectroscopic method and is revealed to exhibit the transverse temperature of 800 K and a longitudinal velocity of 2300 m/s, which are typical for a pulsed-laser-ablation-based atom source. The number of atoms generated by a single ablation pulse is estimated to be 2×105. Our device provides a compact, cryo-compatible fiber-pigtailed atom source with minimized device footprints and reduced complexity of vacuum systems to further promote development of cold-atom experiments. It may also find interesting applications in atomic and molecular sciences.
Polyatomic molecules, while ubiquitous in nature, were generally perceived as too complicated and "unruly" for the majority of quantum physics experiments. However, recent theoretical analyses have pinpointed the multiple advantages of using complex molecules for diverse applications such as the creation of a universal quantum computer, quantum simulation of non-trivial many-body states, and tests of fundamental physical laws. Throughout my dissertation research I focused on extending experimental techniques from atomic physics to complex molecules. The goal of my work was to not only demonstrate new ways to control molecules, but also develop a novel experimental platform for quantum science - complex polyatomic molecules - and provide tools for physicists to conquer new frontiers in physics and chemistry.\nThe main theme of this thesis is the use of laser radiation to control internal and external degrees of freedom for the triatomic radical strontium monohydroxide (SrOH). The research achievements presented here can be primarily divided into the following areas:\ni) out-of-equilibrium studies of vibrationally inelastic collisions at cryogenic temperatures,\nii) demonstration of the radiation pressure force and the direct laser cooling of polyatomic molecules, and\niii) the development of concepts for laser cooling of molecules with six and more atoms.\nFor the collisional studies, off-diagonal optical pumping was used to populate excited Sr-O stretching state and the ratio of elastic to vibrational quenching collisions was determined to be ~700. In the laser cooling work, using only laser light, the transverse temperature of the cryogenic buffer-gas beam of SrOH was reduced from 50 mK to below 1 mK, leading to an order of magnitude increase in phase space density of the molecular beam. Additionally, the prospects of using a coherent bichromatic force for optical deceleration of polyatomics were analyzed and experimentally characterized with the transverse deflection of the SrOH beam. Our experimental results with SrOH and theoretical analysis of more complex strontium alkoxides not only open a wide range of future directions for laser manipulation and trapping of polyatomic molecules but also help overturn long held assumptions about the difficulties of performing "traditional" atomic physics experiments with complex molecules.