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Chinese Physics B

Potential Energy Curves and Binding Energies of Heteronuclear Ultralong-Range Rydberg Molecules: Case Study of the Rb-Cs system

Qing Li, Shi-Yao Shao, Li-Hua Zhang, Bang Liu, Zheng-Yuan Zhang, Jun Zhang, Qi-Feng Wang, Han-Chao Chen, Yu Ma, Tianyu Han, Dong-Sheng Ding, Bao-Sen Shi

Published Sep 10, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Abstract Ultralong-range Rydberg molecules (ULRMs) have attracted significant interest due to their unique formation mechanisms and distinctive properties. We theoretically investigate the formation and characteristics of heteronuclear ULRMs, focusing on Rb-Cs systems. We calculate the vibrational energy levels of $nS$ heteronuclear ULRMs and extend our analysis to polyatomic systems, tracing the evolution of binding energies as the molecular configuration changes. Our theoretical results are presented in terms of potential energy curves and the associated vibrational spectra, providing insight into the formation dynamics of these systems. These results also provide a framework for experimental efforts in probing heteronuclear ULRMs, which serve as a sensitive platform for investigating the fundamental properties of Rydberg atoms and their interactions with ground-state atoms, while providing a benchmark for \textit{ab initio} calculations.

DOI
10.1088/1674-1056/aea535

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We review ultralong-range Rydberg molecules (ULRMs), which are bound states between a Rydberg atom and one or more ground-state atoms with bond lengths on the order of thousands of Bohr radii. The binding originates from multiple electron-atom scattering and leads to exotic oscillatory potential energy surfaces that reflect the probability density of the Rydberg electron. This unconventional binding mechanism opens fascinating possibilities to tune molecular properties via weak external fields, to study spin-resolved low-energy electron-atom scattering as well as to control and to probe interatomic forces in few- and many-body systems. Here, we provide an overview on recent theoretical and experimental progress in the field with an emphasis on polyatomic ULRMs, field control and spin interactions.
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