Testing fundamental physics with ultracold molecules

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Ultracold molecules can be used to measure the electron's electric dipole moment (eEDM) and to measure the stability of the electron-to-proton mass ratio. These measurements use the latest advances in quantum technology in order to search for new physics that goes beyond the Standard Model. The aim of the project is to measure the eEDM using molecules trapped in an optical lattice. The work will begin by laser cooling and magneto-optical trapping of the desired molecules. These will then be transferred to an optical lattice and transported into a magnetically shielded apparatus. Here, the molecular spin will be prepared by stimulated Raman adiabatic passage, then allowed to precess in the presence of a strong electric field. The electric-field-induced spin precession frequency determines the eEDM and can be measured by mapping the angle of the spin onto the hyperfine levels of the molecules and then reading out the populations in those levels.