Photoionization spectroscopy of excited states of cold cesium dimers

TL;DR

This paper presents a detailed photoionization spectroscopic analysis of excited states of cold cesium dimers, crucial for quantum control and detection of these molecules.

Contribution

It provides comprehensive spectroscopic data on multiple excited states of cold cesium dimers used for detection and quantum manipulation.

Findings

Identification of all excited states used for detection

Spectroscopic data across a wide laser energy range

Insights into vibrational distribution of ground state molecules

Abstract

Photoionization spectroscopy of cold cesium dimers obtained by photoassociation of cold atoms in a magneto-optical trap is reported here. In particular, we report on the observation and on the spectroscopic analysis of all the excited states that have actually been used for efficient detection of cold molecules stabilized in the triplet a^3Sigma_u^+ ground state. They are: the (1)^3Sigma_g^+ state connected to the 6s+6p asymptote, the (2)^3Sigma_g^+ and (2)^3Pi_g states connected to the 6s+5d asymptote and finally the (3)^3Sigma_g^+ state connected to the 6s + 7s asymptote. The detection through these states spans a wide range of laser energies, from 8000 to 16500 cm-1, obtained with different laser dyes and techniques. Information on the initial distribution of cold molecules among the different vibrational levels of the a^3Sigma_u^+ ground state is also provided. This spectroscopic knowledge is important when conceiving schemes for quantum manipulation, population transfer and optical detection of cold cesium molecules.