Prospects for the measurement of the electron electric dipole moment using YbF

TL;DR

This paper discusses an ongoing experiment at Imperial College London aiming to measure the electron's electric dipole moment using YbF molecules, with potential for significant sensitivity improvements.

Contribution

It presents a novel experimental approach combining laser and radiofrequency techniques to enhance EDM measurement sensitivity using YbF molecules.

Findings

Analysis of systematic effects that could mimic the EDM signal

Technical improvements projected to increase sensitivity by over tenfold

Detailed description of the measurement method and setup

Abstract

We discuss an experiment underway at Imperial College London to measure the permanent electric dipole moment (EDM) of the electron using a molecular beam of YbF. We describe the measurement method, which uses a combination of laser and radiofrequency resonance techniques to detect the spin precession of the YbF molecule in a strong electric field. We pay particular attention to the analysis scheme and explore some of the possible systematic effects which might mimic the EDM signal. Finally, we describe technical improvements which should increase the sensitivity by more than an order of magnitude over the current experimental limit.