Formation of molecular ions by radiative association of cold trapped atoms and ions

Abstract

Radiative emission during cold collisions between trapped laser-cooled Rb atoms and alkaline-earth ions (Ca${}^{+}$, Sr${}^{+}$, Ba${}^{+}$) and Yb${}^{+}$, and between Li and Yb${}^{+}$, are studied theoretically, using accurate effective-core-potential based quantum chemistry calculations of potential energy curves and transition dipole moments of the related molecular ions. Radiative association of molecular ions is predicted to occur for all systems with a cross section two to ten times larger than the radiative charge transfer one. Partial and total rate constants are also calculated and compared to available experiments. Narrow shape resonances are expected, which could be detectable at low temperature with an experimental resolution at the limit of the present standards. Vibrational distributions are also calculated, showing that the final molecular ions are not created in their ground state level.

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Cited by in corpus (10)

• Observation of collisions between cold Li atoms and Yb${}^{+}$ ions
• Life and death of a cold BaRb${}^{+}$ molecule inside an ultracold cloud of Rb atoms
• Cold trapped molecular ions and hybrid platforms for ions and neutral particles
• Ab initio electronic structure and prospects for the formation of ultracold calcium--alkali-metal-atom molecular ions
• Controlling the nature of a charged impurity in a bath of Feshbach dimers
• High-energy-resolution measurement of ultracold atom-ion collisional cross section
• Electric field analysis in a cold-ion source using Stark spectroscopy of Rydberg atoms
• Rotational state-changing collisions between N${}_2^{+}$ and Rb at low energies
• Ion loss events in a cold Rb-Ca${}^{+}$ hybrid trap: photodissociation, black-body radiation and non-radiative charge exchange
• Vibrational quenching of cold molecular ions immersed in their parent gas