Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

The proposed research is on the production and study of ultra-cold (< 1 mK) molecular gases formed from laser cooled atoms. Ultra-cold gases of atomic lithium and rubidium are created using standard laser cooling techniques, and molecules will be created by linking together atomic pairs in the mixed gas. The resulting molecular ensembles will open the way to exploring ultra-cold chemistry where reaction dynamics are no longer stochastic but can be controlled coherently by external fields and to studies of strongly interacting gases in which exotic, highly correlated quantum states can arise. The proposed research program has two main goals: 1) the development of new sources of ultra-cold atomic and molecular gases and 2) the application of these cold gases to the study of few and many-body quantum phenomena. An apparatus for the creation of laser cooled lithium and rubidium atomic clouds is presently in operation; however, the laser amplifier system in use is not spectrally pure making measurements on the atomic gas, which rely on fluorescence and absorption images, difficult and unreliable. This technical problem presents the primary bottleneck for the progress of this research program already underway. This NSERC RTI will support the purchase of a new, spectrally pure, laser amplifier system for the existing apparatus to improve its function and enable the proposed research goals.