Quantum control of molecules

The group studies individual molecular ions confined in radio-frequency traps and cooled to near their motional ground state, where the rich internal structure of molecules - rotation, vibration, fine and hyperfine levels - becomes a resource rather than an obstacle. By sympathetically cooling a molecular ion alongside a co-trapped atomic ion and reading out its state through that atomic partner, the group prepares, coherently manipulates, and measures the quantum state of a single molecule with high fidelity.

This control opens two complementary directions. The dense ladder of molecular transitions provides exquisitely sensitive probes of fundamental physics - tests of the time variation of fundamental constants, searches for new forces, and high-precision spectroscopy that can underpin molecular clocks - while the many long-lived internal states make molecules attractive carriers of quantum information. The work sits at the intersection of atomic, molecular and optical physics and quantum technology, turning the complexity of molecules into a controllable platform.