Optical Stark deceleration of nitric oxide and benzene molecules using optical lattices

Abstract

We describe the deceleration of nitric oxide, benzene and xenon atoms in a molecular beam using one-dimensional pulsed optical lattices created by fields with intensities in the 1012 W cm−2 range. We show that for the same pulse duration and lattice intensity the velocity of the molecules can be controlled by tailoring the lattice velocity. By utilizing the time-dependent oscillatory motion of the molecules within the lattice, we demonstrate the deceleration of nitric oxide from an initial velocity of 400 m s−1 to a final velocity of 290 m s−1 in a single 5.8 ns pulse. Using higher intensities, we measure the deceleration of benzene molecules from 380 m s−1 to 191 m s−1, representing a 75% reduction in the kinetic energy within the lattice over the same duration.