Abstract
We describe a possible method for laser cooling OH molecules. The method is based on exciting the ΔJ = 2 stimulated Raman transition in the ground electronic and vibronic state. The molecules are assumed to already be trapped with a temperature of ∼10 mK or less in a spatially varying magnetic field. By exciting the molecule in a region of high magnetic field, the subsequent spontaneous photon emission at lower magnetic field removes centre-of-mass energy from the molecule. The vacuum decay rate from the J = 7/2, F = 4, MF = 4 to J = 5/2, F = 3, MF = 3 is roughly 0.31 Hz and the next cascade to J = 3/2, F = 2, MF = 2 is roughly 0.15 Hz. A cavity tuned to stimulate both transitions in a small region of space can enhance the decay. Simulations of the radiative transitions indicate that up to 20% of a population of OH molecules with an average energy of 10 mK will finish with energies less than 200 µK.
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