Abstract: Chemical reactions in the quantum degenerate regime are governed by nonlinear mixing of matterwave fields. For Bosonic reactants and products, coherent dynamics and bosonic enhancement are two unique features of reactions in the many-body regime, dubbed “quantum super-chemistry”. In this talk, I report the observation of molecular Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) emerging from atomic BECs, and collective oscillations between atomic and molecular fields. Faster coherent couplings are observed in samples with higher densities, indicating bosonic enhancement. We present a quantum field model which well describes the dynamics and identifies three-body recombination as the dominant process that couples atoms and molecules. Our findings exemplify the highly sought-after quantum many-body chemistry and offer a new paradigm to collectively control chemical reactions of ultracold molecules.
JQI Seminars are held on Mondays during Fall and Spring semesters at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time in Room 2400 of the Atlantic Building. University of Maryland affiliates may participate using Zoom. The seminars are also livestreamed on the JQI YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/JQInews), which supports audience participation in the chat interface.
You will need to bring your cell phone, so you can sign in. For Zoom, please submit a chat saying hello with your first and last name, so you can receive lunch. Lunch will be served after the seminar only to the individuals that have attended.
At 4pm, there will be a tea in ATL 2117 for our speaker and students - this is a chance for students to ask questions directly to our speaker. Refreshments will be served.