Abstract
The main limitation of most ultracold chemistry studies to date is the lack of an analysis of reaction products. Here, we discuss a generally tractable, rigorous theoretical framework for computing statistical product-state distributions for ultracold reactions in external fields. We show that fields have two main effects on the products of a statistical reaction, by (1) modifying the product energy levels and thus potentially reshaping the product distributions and/or (2) adding or removing product states by changing the reaction exothermicity. By analyzing these effects and the strength of the formalism to distinguish between different reaction mechanisms in benchmark reactions involving $^{40}\mathrm{K}$ and $^{87}\mathrm{Rb}$ species, we argue that statistical predictions will help understanding product formation and control, and lead developments to realize the full potential of ultracold chemistry.
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