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APS » Journals » Phys. Rev. Lett. » Volume 101 » Issue 7
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Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 073201 (2008) [4 pages]

Suppression of Inelastic Collisions Between Polar Molecules With a Repulsive Shield

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A. V. Gorshkov1, P. Rabl1,2, G. Pupillo3,4, A. Micheli3,4, P. Zoller3,4, M. D. Lukin1,2, and H. P. Büchler5
1Physics Department, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
2Institute for Theoretical Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA
3Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Information, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria
4Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Innsbruck, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria
5Theoretische Physik III, University of Stuttgart, 70155 Stuttgart, Germany

Received 5 May 2008; published 14 August 2008

We propose and analyze a technique that allows one to suppress inelastic collisions and simultaneously enhance elastic interactions between cold polar molecules. The main idea is to cancel the leading dipole-dipole interaction with a suitable combination of static electric and microwave fields in such a way that the remaining van der Waals-type potential forms a three-dimensional repulsive shield. We analyze the elastic and inelastic scattering cross sections relevant for evaporative cooling of polar molecules and discuss the prospect for the creation of stable crystalline structures.

© 2008 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.073201
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.101.073201
PACS:
34.50.Rk, 37.10.Mn, 64.70.dg
 
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