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New Journal of Physics

A cold beam of BaOH molecules using a water-vapor seeded neon gas

Ties H. Fikkers, Nithesh Balasubramanian, Joost W. F. van Hofslot, Maarten C. Mooij, Hendrick L. Bethlem, Steven Hoekstra

Published Jan 21, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract In this paper we report on the production and characterization of a cold beam of BaOH molecules using a cryogenic buffer-gas beam source. BaOH is a highly suitable molecule for studies of the violation of fundamental symmetries, such as the search for the electron’s electric dipole moment. BaOH molecules are synthesized inside the cold source through laser ablation of a barium metal target while water vapor is seeded into the neon buffer gas. The BaOH flux is significantly enhanced (∼11 times) when laser-exciting the barium atoms inside the buffer-gas cell on the 1 S 0 – 3 P 1 transition. A similar enhancement has been reported for other alkaline-earth(-like) monohydroxides. For typical source conditions, the molecular beam has an average velocity of ≈ 180 m s −1 and an intensity of ∼ 10 9 molecules s −1 in N = 1, which is comparable to that of cryogenic BaF beams.

DOI
10.1088/1367-2630/ae3b66

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Abstract In this paper we report on the production and characterization of a cold beam of BaOH molecules using a cryogenic buffer-gas beam source. BaOH is a highly suitable molecule for studies of the violation of fundamental symmetries, such as the search for the electron’s electric dipole moment. BaOH molecules are synthesized inside the cold source through laser ablation of a barium metal target while water vapor is seeded into the neon buffer gas. The BaOH flux is significantly enhanced (∼11 times) when laser-exciting the barium atoms inside the buffer-gas cell on the 1 S 0 – 3 P 1 transition. A similar enhancement has been reported for other alkaline-earth(-like) monohydroxides. For typical source conditions, the molecular beam has an average velocity of ≈ 180 m s −1 and an intensity of ∼ 10 9 molecules s −1 in N = 1, which is comparable to that of cryogenic BaF beams.
In this paper we report on the production and characterization of a cold beam of BaOH molecules using a cryogenic buffer-gas beam source. BaOH is a highly suitable molecule for studies of the violation of fundamental symmetries, such as the search for the electron's electric dipole moment. BaOH molecules are synthesised inside the cold source through laser ablation of a barium metal target while water vapor is seeded into the neon buffer gas. The BaOH flux is significantly enhanced ($\sim$11 times) when laser-exciting the barium atoms inside the buffer-gas cell on the 1S0−3P1^1\mathrm S_0 - ^3\mathrm P_11S0​−3P1​ transition. A similar enhancement has been reported for other alkaline-earth(-like) monohydroxides. For typical source conditions, the molecular beam has an average velocity of ≈180\approx180≈180 m/s and an intensity of ∼109\sim 10^{9}∼109 molecules s−1^{-1}−1 in N=1N=1N=1, which is comparable to that of cryogenic BaF beams.
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 realize a continuous, intense, cold molecular and atomic beam source based on buffer-gas cooling. Hot vapor (up to 600 K) from an oven is mixed with cold (15 K) neon buffer gas, and then emitted into a high-flux beam. The novel use of cold neon as a buffer gas produces a forward velocity distribution and low-energy tail that is comparable to much colder helium-based sources. We expect this source to be trivially generalizable to a very wide range of atomic and molecular species with significant vapor pressure below 1000 K. The source has properties that make it a good starting point for laser cooling of molecules or atoms, cold collision studies, trapping, or nonlinear optics in buffer-gas-cooled atomic or molecular gases. A continuous guided beam of cold deuterated ammonia with a flux of 3 × 10 11 ND 3 molecules s −1 and a continuous free-space beam of cold potassium with a flux of 1 × 10 16 K atoms s −1 are realized.
Cryogenic buffer gas sources are ubiquitous for producing cold, collimated molecular beams for quantum science, chemistry, and precision measurements. The molecules are typically produced by laser ablating a metal target in the presence of a donor gas. The radical of interest emerges due to a barrier-free reaction or under thermal or optical excitation. High-barrier reactions, such as between Ca and H 2, should be precluded. We study chemical reactions between Ca and three hydrogen isotopologues (H 2, D 2, and HD) in a cryogenic cell with helium buffer gas. We observe that H 2 can serve as both a reactant and a buffer gas, outperforming D 2 and HD. We use a reaction network model to describe the chemical dynamics and find that the enhanced molecular yield can be attributed to rapid vibrational excitations of the reactant gas. Our results demonstrate a robust method for generating bright cold beams of alkaline-earth-metal hydrides for laser cooling and trapping.
We realize a continuous, intense, cold molecular and atomic beam source based on buffer-gas cooling. Hot vapor (up to 600 K) from an oven is mixed with cold (15 K) neon buffer gas, and then emitted into a high-flux beam. The novel use of cold neon as a buffer gas produces a forward velocity distribution and low-energy tail that is comparable to much colder helium-based sources. We expect this source to be trivially generalizable to a very wide range of atomic and molecular species with significant vapor pressure below 1000 K. The source has properties that make it a good starting point for laser cooling of molecules or atoms, cold collision studies, trapping, or nonlinear optics in buffer-gas-cooled atomic or molecular gases. A continuous guided beam of cold deuterated ammonia with a flux of 3×10\\(^{11}\\) ND\\(_{3}\\) molecules s\\(^{−1}\\) and a continuous free-space beam of cold potassium with a flux of 1×10\\(^{16}\\) K atoms s\\(^{−1}\\) are realized.
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.