0000000000650447
AUTHOR
Alexander A. Breier
Mass-independent analysis of the stable isotopologues of gas-phase titanium monoxide – TiO
More than 130 pure rotational transitions of $^{46}$TiO, $^{47}$TiO, $^{48}$TiO, $^{49}$TiO, $^{50}$TiO, and $^{48}$Ti$^{18}$O are recorded using a high-resolution mm-wave supersonic jet spectrometer in combination with a laser ablation source. For the first time a mass-independent Dunham-like analysis is performed encompassing rare titanium monoxide isotopologues, and are compared to results from high-accuracy quantum-chemical calculations. The obtained parametrization reveals for titanium monoxide effects due to deviations from the Born-Oppenheimer approximation. Additionally, the dominant titanium properties enable an insight into the electronic structure of TiO by analyzing its hyperfin…
Opportunities for Fundamental Physics Research with Radioactive Molecules
Molecules containing short-lived, radioactive nuclei are uniquely positioned to enable a wide range of scientific discoveries in the areas of fundamental symmetries, astrophysics, nuclear structure, and chemistry. Recent advances in the ability to create, cool, and control complex molecules down to the quantum level, along with recent and upcoming advances in radioactive species production at several facilities around the world, create a compelling opportunity to coordinate and combine these efforts to bring precision measurement and control to molecules containing extreme nuclei. In this manuscript, we review the scientific case for studying radioactive molecules, discuss recent atomic, mo…
A mass-independent expanded Dunham analysis of aluminum monoxide and aluminum monosulfide
Abstract Pure rotational transitions of 27Al16O, 27Al18O, 27Al32S, and 27Al34S are recorded in the vibrational ground state and singly excited vibrational state using a mm-wavelength supersonic jet spectrometer in combination with a laser ablation source. In total 275 rotational transitions have been assigned. For the first time, mass-independent expanded Dunham analyses are performed using isotopologues of aluminum monoxide and aluminum monosulfide. The breakdown of the Born-Oppenheimer approximation is observed. Based on these mass-independent analyses, frequency positions of pure rotational transitions of the rare radioactive isotopologues 26AlO and 26AlS are predicted with uncertainties…
Infrared Spectroscopy of Disilicon-Carbide, Si2C: The ν3 Fundamental Band
The ν3 antisymmetric stretching mode of disilicon-carbide, Si2C, was studied using a narrow line width infrared quantum cascade laser spectrometer operating at 8.3 μm. The Si2C molecules were produ...
Spectroscopy of short-lived radioactive molecules
Molecular spectroscopy offers opportunities for the exploration of the fundamental laws of nature and the search for new particle physics beyond the standard model1–4. Radioactive molecules—in which one or more of the atoms possesses a radioactive nucleus—can contain heavy and deformed nuclei, offering high sensitivity for investigating parity- and time-reversal-violation effects5,6. Radium monofluoride, RaF, is of particular interest because it is predicted to have an electronic structure appropriate for laser cooling6, thus paving the way for its use in high-precision spectroscopic studies. Furthermore, the effects of symmetry-violating nuclear moments are strongly enhanced5,7–9 in molecu…
Isotope Shifts of Radium Monofluoride Molecules
Isotope shifts of $^{223-226,228}$Ra$^{19}$F were measured for different vibrational levels in the electronic transition $A^{2}{}{\Pi}_{1/2}\leftarrow X^{2}{}{\Sigma}^{+}$. The observed isotope shifts demonstrate the particularly high sensitivity of radium monofluoride to nuclear size effects, offering a stringent test of models describing the electronic density within the radium nucleus. Ab initio quantum chemical calculations are in excellent agreement with experimental observations. These results highlight some of the unique opportunities that short-lived molecules could offer in nuclear structure and in fundamental symmetry studies.