Studies with Ultracold Hydrogen

Massachusetts Institute Of Technology, Cambridge MA

Investigators

Abstract

This experimental research program will utilize buffer gas cooling to aid in the trapping of hydrogen and holds the potential for opening the way to a new area of super precise spectroscopy. The method involves the simultaneous trapping of hydrogen and lithium. The admixture of lithium serves to accelerate the evaporative cooling of hydrogen. Using this method, a new determination of the Lamb Shift and Rydberg constant of hydrogen is proposed, based on two-photon Doppler-free spectroscopy of transitions such as 2S-8S. Such a measurement, combined with new studies to determine the proton radius, could also help resolve questions about possible limitations to QED. An important feature of the new method is that it is expected to work for deuterium, which has never been trapped. Related studies include determinations of scattering lengths for excited and ground state cold collisions in hydrogen, and photoassociation spectroscopy of LiH. The broader impact of the program involves the training of graduate students (including two women recently) as well as applications to optical frequency standards.