Schedule Mar 15, 2013
Cold Collision Dynamics of Scandium Atoms
Gerrit Groenenboom (Radboud Univ.)

Authors: "Tijs Karman and Gerrit C. Groenenboom"

Address: "Theoretical Chemistry, Institute for Molecules and Materials,
Radboud University Nijmegen"

Abstract:
The interaction between atoms in non-zero angular momentum states is
anisotropic. The anisotropy causes spin flip or spin reorientation in
collisions. In magnetic traps this causes Zeeman relaxation and trap loss. In
collisions between rare-earth atoms and helium it was found that the anisotropy
is suppressed when the outer shell is spherically symmetric [1]. However,
large spin relaxation rates were measured in collisions between such
submerged-shell atoms [2]. We study collisions between scandium atoms.
Scandium is the lightest transition metal atom. It has a single unpaired
electron in the submerged 3d shell. We perform coupled channels calculation
using crude but realistic potentials using the formalism of Ref. [3]. We find
that the ratio between spin-inelastic and elastic cross sections around a
millikelvin is unfavorable for evaporative cooling.

[1] C. I. Hancox et al., Nature 431, 281 (2004)
[2] C. B. Connoly et al., Phys. Rev. A 81, 010702 (2010)
[3] R. V. Krems et al., J. Phys. Chem. A 108, 8941 (2004)

View poster as pdf.

Author entry (protected)