Rydberg molecules for ion-atom scattering in the ultracold regime

Abstract

We propose a novel experimental method to extend the investigation of ion-atom collisions from the so far studied cold, essentially classical regime to the ultracold, quantum regime. Key aspect of this method is the use of Rydberg molecules to initialize the ultracold ion-atom scattering event. We exemplify the proposed method with the lithium ion-atom system, for which we present simulations of how the initial Rydberg molecule wavefunction, freed by photoionization, evolves in the presence of the ion-atom scattering potential. We predict bounds for the ion-atom scattering length from ab initio calculations of the interaction potential. We demonstrate that, in the predicted bounds, the scattering length can be experimentally determined from the velocity of the scattered wavepacket in the case of ${}^{\text{6}}{\text{Li}}^{\text{+}}$ - ${}^{\text{6}}\text{Li}$, and from the molecular ion fraction in the case of ${}^{\text{7}}{\text{Li}}^{\text{+}}$ - ${}^{\text{7}}\text{Li}$. The proposed method to utilize Rydberg molecules for ultracold ion-atom scattering, here particularized for the lithium ion-atom system, is readily applicable to other ion-atom systems as well.

arXiv comment12 pages, 7 figures

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Cited by in corpus (36)

• Cold hybrid ion-atom systems
• Buffer gas cooling of a trapped ion to the quantum regime
• Trilobites, butterflies, and other exotic specimens of long-range Rydberg molecules
• Transport of a single cold ion immersed in a Bose-Einstein condensate
• Observation of Rydberg Blockade Induced by a Single Ion
• Rydberg molecules for ion-atom scattering in the ultracold regime
• Long-range Rydberg-atom-ion molecules of Rb and Cs
• Interactions and chemical reactions in ionic alkali-metal and alkaline-earth-metal diatomic $A{B}^{+}$ and triatomic $A_2{B}^{+}$ systems
• A pulsed ion microscope to probe quantum gases
• Cold chemistry: a few-body perspective on impurity physics of a single ion in an ultracold bath
• Ab initio properties of the NaLi molecule in the $a^3{\Sigma }^{+}$ electronic state
• Formation of long-range Rydberg molecules in two-component ultracold gases
• Dressed ion-pair states of an ultralong-range Rydberg molecule
• Alignment of s-state Rydberg molecules in magnetic fields
• Heteronuclear Rydberg molecules
• Non-adiabatic decay of Rydberg-atom-ion molecules
• High-energy-resolution measurement of ultracold atom-ion collisional cross section
• Ultracold ion-atom experiments: cooling, chemistry, and quantum effects
• Non-adiabatic interaction effects in the spectra of ultralong-range Rydberg molecules
• The building principle of triatomic trilobite Rydberg molecules
• Experimental setup for studying an ultracold mixture of trapped Yb${}^{+}$-${}^6$Li
• Coulomb anti-blockade in a Rydberg dressed gas
• Interaction potentials and ultracold scattering cross sections for the ${}^7$Li${}^{+}$-${}^7$Li ion-atom system
• Ab initio potential energy curves, scattering lengths, and rovibrational levels of the He${}_2^{+}$ molecular ion in excited electronic states
• Charged ultralong-range Rydberg trimers
• Spectral properties of a three body atom-ion hybrid system
• $R$-matrix calculations of electron collisions with lithium atom at low energies
• Interactions and charge transfer dynamics of an Al${}^{+}$ ion immersed in ultracold Rb and Sr atoms
• Interactions of Ions and Ultracold Neutral Atom Ensembles in Composite Optical Dipole Traps: Developments and Perspectives
• Limitations of coupled cluster approximations for highlyaccurate investigations of Rb${}_2^{+}$
• $In$ $situ$ observation of non-polar to strongly polar atom-ion collision dynamics
• Ring Rydberg Composites
• Ab initio electronic structure of the Sr${}_2^{+}$ molecular ion
• Internal diffraction dynamics of trilobite molecules
• Long-range Rydberg molecule Rb${}_2$: Two-electron \textit{R}-matrix calculations at intermediate internuclear distances
• High-accuracy Rb${}_2^{+}$ interaction potentials based on coupled cluster calculations