A platform for nuclear symmetry-violation searches with laser-coolable molecules carrying spinful nuclei

2026/08/06 by Tatsam Garg, Jakob Weiß, Tesse Tiemens +3
Physics and Astronomy · #physics.atom-ph #nucl-ex #quant-ph

paper · pdf

arxiv created 2026/08/06 · arxiv updated 2026/08/07

Abstract

Cold heavy molecules are promising systems for exploring nuclear P- and CP-violating phenomena in search of new physics beyond the Standard Model. However, most proposed experimental strategies and their early realizations to date have been limited to proof-of-principle molecular species with effectively spin-zero nuclei that are not sensitive to nuclear symmetry-violating phenomena. Here, we introduce a comprehensive experimental toolbox that integrates cooling, trapping, coherent state manipulation, and a complete precision-measurement protocol that is applicable to molecules carrying relevant nuclear spins. Using ¹³⁷Ba¹⁹F and nuclear-spin-dependent parity violation (NSD-PV) as representative species and benchmark application, respectively, our approach achieves a projected statistical sensitivity roughly two orders of magnitude beyond comparable molecular beams by combining techniques already demonstrated individually in current experiments. This level of precision could provide realistic experimental access not only to the enhanced NSD-PV signals arising from the heavy ¹³⁷Ba nucleus within this molecule but also to the contributions from the lighter ¹⁹F nucleus, bringing direct benchmarks of nuclear ab initio theory within reach. We further identify a candidate magic wavelength as a route to second-scale rotational coherence in future experiments. The techniques developed here can be transferred to measurements of nuclear Schiff and magnetic quadrupole moments in molecules containing deformed nuclei, establishing a general platform for laboratory searches for nuclear symmetry violations.

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