Orateur
Description
Laser-based atomic and molecular physics provides a unique toolbox for exploring matter at the quantum level, enabling both detailed spectroscopic studies and some of the most sensitive tests of fundamental physical laws. At the Laboratoire Aimé Cotton, a wide range of experimental activities exploit lasers to produce, manipulate, and probe cold atoms, ions, and molecules, with applications spanning precision spectroscopy, molecular dynamics, and tests of fundamental symmetries.
In this seminar, I will give a general overview of the research activities of our group, with an emphasis on experiments involving laser cooling, cold atoms, cold molecules, Rydberg atoms and production of ions and electrons. A particular focus will be placed on our efforts to use atomic and molecular systems as probes of physics beyond the Standard Model. Low-energy precision experiments offer a complementary approach to high-energy particle physics, especially in the search for tiny symmetry-violating effects. In this context, I will discuss recent and ongoing work on electric dipole moment searches, including approaches based on atoms and molecules embedded in cryogenic matrices, which combine large particle numbers with laser-based control.
Overall, this talk aims to show how laser-based experiments on cold atomic and molecular systems at the Laboratoire Aimé Cotton contribute both to molecular physics and to the broader quest for new physics beyond the Standard Model.