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APS » Journals » Phys. Rev. Lett. » Volume 89 » Issue 9
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Phys. Rev. Lett. 89, 093001 (2002) [4 pages]

Mesoscopic Molecular Ions in Bose-Einstein Condensates

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R. Côté1, V. Kharchenko2, and M. D. Lukin2,3
1Physics Department, University of Connecticut, 2152 Hillside Road, Storrs, Connecticut 06269-3046
2ITAMP, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138
3Physics Department, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138

Received 19 December 2001; published 9 August 2002

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We study the possible formation of large (mesoscopic) molecular ions in an ultracold degenerate bosonic gas doped with charged particles (ions). We show that the polarization potentials produced by the ionic impurities are capable of capturing hundreds of atoms into loosely bound states. We describe the spontaneous formation of these hollow molecular ions via phonon emission and suggest an optical technique for coherent stimulated transitions of condensate atoms into a specific bound state. These results open up new possibilities for manipulating tightly confined ensembles.

© 2002 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.89.093001
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.89.093001
PACS:
33.90.+h, 03.75.Fi, 34.10.+x, 36.40.–c
 
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