Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motion

In mergoassociation, two atoms in separate optical traps are combined to form a molecule when the traps are merged. Previous theoretical treatments have considered only the relative motion of the atoms, neglecting coupling to the motion of the center of mass. We develop a theoretical method to inclu...

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Main Authors: Robert C. Bird, Jeremy M. Hutson
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: American Physical Society 2025-07-01
Series:Physical Review Research
Online Access:http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.7.033022
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author Robert C. Bird
Jeremy M. Hutson
author_facet Robert C. Bird
Jeremy M. Hutson
author_sort Robert C. Bird
collection DOAJ
description In mergoassociation, two atoms in separate optical traps are combined to form a molecule when the traps are merged. Previous theoretical treatments have considered only the relative motion of the atoms, neglecting coupling to the motion of the center of mass. We develop a theoretical method to include the coupling to center-of-mass motion and consider its consequences for experiments for both weak and strong coupling. We consider the example of RbCs and then extend the treatment to other systems where mergoassociation may be effective, namely RbSr, RbYb, and CsYb. We consider the role of the coupling when the traps are anisotropic and the potential use of movable traps to construct quantum logic gates.
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spelling doaj-art-bdb802c26954408e95da0013624ada092025-08-20T03:33:39ZengAmerican Physical SocietyPhysical Review Research2643-15642025-07-017303302210.1103/PhysRevResearch.7.033022Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motionRobert C. BirdJeremy M. HutsonIn mergoassociation, two atoms in separate optical traps are combined to form a molecule when the traps are merged. Previous theoretical treatments have considered only the relative motion of the atoms, neglecting coupling to the motion of the center of mass. We develop a theoretical method to include the coupling to center-of-mass motion and consider its consequences for experiments for both weak and strong coupling. We consider the example of RbCs and then extend the treatment to other systems where mergoassociation may be effective, namely RbSr, RbYb, and CsYb. We consider the role of the coupling when the traps are anisotropic and the potential use of movable traps to construct quantum logic gates.http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.7.033022
spellingShingle Robert C. Bird
Jeremy M. Hutson
Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motion
Physical Review Research
title Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motion
title_full Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motion
title_fullStr Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motion
title_full_unstemmed Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motion
title_short Making molecules by mergoassociation: The role of center-of-mass motion
title_sort making molecules by mergoassociation the role of center of mass motion
url http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevResearch.7.033022
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