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arXiv · 2212.00913

Intercombination line photoassociation spectroscopy of ${}^{87}$Rb${}^{170}$Yb

Abstract

We report on the first observation of photoassociation near the ${}^2 S _\frac 1 2 + {}^3P_1$-asymptote in a mixture of ${}^{87}$Rb and ${}^{170}$Yb. In a search spanning binding energies between 0.1 GHz and 11 GHz, a single pair of interspecies PA resonances is detected around 3.1 GHz. These resonances are characterized by extracting PA rates, binding energies and Zeeman shift coefficients. Using one of these resonances, 2-photon-photoassociaton is performed, improving on previous measurements of the binding energies of the two least bound states in the electronic ground state and demonstrating intercombination line photoassociation as a powerful spectroscopic tool. We discuss implications for pathways towards RbYb molecules in the absolute ground state.

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Tobias Franzen, Bastian Pollklesener, Christian Sillus, Axel Görlitz. 2023-02-28. Intercombination line photoassociation spectroscopy of ${}^{87}$Rb${}^{170}$Yb. https://doi.org/10.1103/physreva.107.023114

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