Production of a cryogenic beam and prospects for traveling-wave Stark deceleration of BaOH

Steinebach, Kees (2020) Production of a cryogenic beam and prospects for traveling-wave Stark deceleration of BaOH. Master's Thesis / Essay, Physics.

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Abstract

The electron electric dipole moment (eEDM) is an important probe for physics beyond the standard model. Currently diatomic molecules such as BaF, YbF or ThO are used for eEDM measurements. It was recently shown that polyatomic molecules isoelectronic to laser-coolable diatomic molecules such as BaF can also be used in an eEDM measurement. These molecules are potentially laser-coolable and because of more vibrational and rotational degrees of freedom important systematic effects can be suppressed. In this thesis it is investigated if the triatomic molecule BaOH can be decelerated in a traveling-wave Stark decelerator and if this molecule can be made in a cryogenic source. This combination can potentially bring the molecules to rest in the laboratory frame or create a slow molecular beam and increase the coherence time of these precision measurements. By first calculating the Stark effect and then performing simulations of the deceleration process it is found that efficient traveling-wave Stark deceleration in the first excited bending vibration is possible and because of the different Stark effect and rotational structure nonadiabatic transitions should be suppressed. By laser ablation of a pressed Ba(OH)2 target in a cryogenic source a beam of BaOH was made and observed through absorption spectroscopy. Upon optimization of the target similar yields as for the isoelectronic diatomic molecule BaF should be possible.

Item Type:	Thesis (Master's Thesis / Essay)
Supervisor name:	Hoekstra, S.
Degree programme:	Physics
Thesis type:	Master's Thesis / Essay
Language:	English
Date Deposited:	04 Mar 2020 12:18
Last Modified:	04 Mar 2020 12:18
URI:	https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/21632

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