A Magneto-Optical Trap for Diatomic Molecules

The magneto-optical trap (MOT) has long been the workhorse for atomic physics and is a powerful technique to rapidly produce ultracold, dense samples of atoms. Extending this technique to produce cold, dense samples of a diverse set of molecules will revolutionize the study of strongly interacting quantum systems, precision measurement and physical chemistry. In this work, we will report on progress towards the realization of a 3 dimensional MOT for the polar molecule YO. We are implementing a chirped frequency laser slowing scheme, where the buffer gas cooled molecules are slowed to a trappable velocity of 10 m/s. The 3D trapping is generated with a quasi-cycling transition and an oscillating quadrupole magnetic field.