Quantum Simulation in Synthetic Dimensions using Ultracold Molecules

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Ultracold polar molecules offer an exciting new platform for quantum science experiments exploring many-body physics. This PhD project will make use of a state-of-the-art apparatus capable of producing a gas of 4000 ground-state RbCs molecules at microkelvin temperatures. The apparatus works by binding together atoms from an ultracold mixture of Rubidium (Rb) and Caesium (Cs) to form the molecules. This is achieved fully coherently by first sweeping a magnetic field through a Feshbach resonance to form weakly-bound molecules, and then transferring these to deeply bound states by stimulated Raman adiabatic passage. The project will focus on controlling the internal and external degrees of freedom of the molecules. The internal state can be fully controlled with microwaves whilst optical lattices, traps made from a standing wave of light, can be used to confine the molecules spatially. A key challenge is to identify strategies to maximise the rotational coherence of the molecules in the optical lattice. With the molecules under control, the project will investigate using the rich internal structure of the molecule as a synthetic dimension to implement quantum simulation of various topological models.