Mixed-field orientation of a thermal ensemble of linear polar molecules

Abstract

21st International Conference on Laser Spectroscopy (ICOLS) 2013We present a theoretical study of the impact of an electrostatic field combined with nonresonant linearly polarized laser pulses on the rotational dynamics of a thermal ensemble of linear molecules. We solve the time-dependent Schrödinger equation within the rigid rotor approximation for several rotational states. Using the carbonyl sulfide (OCS) molecule as a prototype, the mixed- field orientation of a thermal sample is analyzed in detail for experimentally accessible static field strengths and laser pulses. We demonstrate that for a characteristic fi eld con guration used in current mixed- field orientation experiments, a signi cant orientation is obtained for rotational temperatures below 0.7 K as well as using stronger dc fi elds.Financial support by the Spanish project FIS2011-24540 (MICINN), the Grants P11-FQM-7276 and FQM-4643 (Junta de Andalucía), and the Andalusian research group FQM-207 is gratefully appreciated. J.J.O. acknowledges the support of ME under the program FPU