Collisions of Polar Molecules with Ultracold Alkali Metal Atoms (IP3 of EuroQUAM CoPoMol)

在非常低的温度下，物质进入一个新的状态，其性质完全是量子力学的。这种量子物质是非常精确的可控的，并提供了许多新的特性，这些特性可能成为未来技术的基础。EuroQUAM计划是由欧洲科学基金会协调的EUROCORES计划，旨在发展欧洲冷量子物质研究。EuroQUAM计划的一个主要目标是实现极性分子的量子简并性。利用不均匀的电场，已经有可能将极性分子减慢到几乎静止的状态，并将它们困在1毫开尔文左右的温度下。然而，量子简并需要相当低的温度，为了实现减速分子，有必要开发一种可以达到亚微开尔文制度的第二阶段冷却机制。一种非常有前途的方法是交感冷却，其中分子通过与超冷原子接触而冷却。CoPoMol的提议汇集了两个领先的实验组（柏林，伦敦）和三个理论组（达勒姆，华沙，奈梅亨），以探索交感冷却和发展我们对原子-分子和分子-分子碰撞的理解。理论和实验之间的相互作用在原子量子气体的产生中至关重要，对极性分子也同样重要。本建议是一个紧密结合的实验和理论研究。达勒姆的工作将集中在对感应冷却至关重要的原子分子碰撞的理论方面。整个提案将为实现冷凝以形成偶极量子气体提供基础，并为受控超冷化学的发展铺平道路。

At very low temperatures, matter enters a new regime where its properties are fully quantum-mechanical. Such quantum matter is very precisely controllable and offers many new properties that are likely to form the basis of future technologies. The EuroQUAM Programme is a EUROCORES Programme coordinated by the European Science Foundation to develop European research in Cold Quantum Matter. A major objective of the EuroQUAM programme is to achieve quantum degeneracy for polar molecules. It is already possible to slow polar molecules almost to rest using inhomogeneous electric fields and trap them at temperatures around 1 milliKelvin. However, quantum degeneracy requires considerably lower temperatures, and to achieve it for decelerated molecules it will be necessary to develop a second-stage cooling mechanism that can reach the sub-microKelvin regime. A very promising approach to this is sympathetic cooling, in which the molecules are cooled by contact with ultracold atoms. The CoPoMol proposal brings together two leading experimental groups (Berlin, London) and three theoretical groups (Durham, Warsaw, Nijmegen) to explore sympathetic cooling and to develop our understanding of atom-molecule and molecule-molecule collisions. The interplay between theory and experiment was pivotal in the creation of atomic quantum gases and will be equally crucial for polar molecules. This proposal is for a closely integrated experimental and theoretical study. The Durham work will focus on theoretical aspects of the atom-molecule collisions that are crucial for sympathetic cooling. The proposal as a whole will provide the basis for achieving condensation to form a dipolar quantum gas and pave the the way to the development of controlled ultracold chemistry.