dc.contributor.advisor | Parker, Gregory A. | |
dc.contributor.author | Valladier, Stéphane | |
dc.date.accessioned | 2015-04-28T16:16:16Z | |
dc.date.available | 2015-04-28T16:16:16Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2015-04 | |
dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/11244/14449 | |
dc.description.abstract | This dissertation presents the study of how two laser pulses can bind sodium and cesium atoms at ultracold temperature ($T=200\mu K$) into an ultracold, polar, diatomic molecule with a definite quantum state.
A single-channel scattering model represents the initial continuum state, and two different models represent the intermediate state: one excluding spin-orbit coupling effects in the intermediate state, the other accounting for such effects.
We calculate the $A^1\Sigma^+-b^3\Pi$ spin-orbit coupled wave functions using a basis expansion technique, and validate the results by comparing to experimentally obtained, spin-orbit coupled energy levels.
The computation of photoassociation rates between the continuum state and the intermediate states reveals the crucial importance of spin-orbit coupling.
Furthermore, this study shows how the spectral bandwidth (narrow \vs broad), the chirping (chirped vs. unchirped), the detunings, the intensities, and the pulse delay (intuitive \vs counter-intuitive sequence) of the lasers affect the transfer of population from the continuum scattering state to a comparatively low-lying ($v_X=32, J_X=0$) rovibrational state of the $X^1\Sigma^+$ ground electronic state of NaCs.
The transfer process relies either on a sequence of $\pi$-pulses, or uses stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP).
Lasers with narrow spectral bandwidth ($0.5\GHz$) always yield a final population in $\ket{X^1\Sigma^+, v_X=32, J_X=0}$ higher than 95\% in less than 4 ns. | en_US |
dc.language | en_US | en_US |
dc.subject | Physics, Atomic & Molecular | en_US |
dc.title | Photoassociation and Rovibrational Cooling of Sodium Cesium Using Chirped Laser Pulses and Stimulated Raman Adiabatic Passage | en_US |
dc.contributor.committeeMember | Morrison, Michael A. | |
dc.contributor.committeeMember | Abraham, Eric R. I. | |
dc.contributor.committeeMember | Mullen, Kieran J. | |
dc.contributor.committeeMember | Shaffer, James P. | |
dc.contributor.committeeMember | Yip, Wai Tak | |
dc.date.manuscript | 2015-04-25 | |
dc.thesis.degree | Ph.D. | en_US |
ou.group | College of Arts and Sciences::Homer L. Dodge Department of Physics and Astronomy | en_US |
shareok.orcid | orcid.org/0000-0001-8507-943X | en_US |