%0 Journal Article
%T Optical Production of Stable Ultracold $^{88}$Sr$_2$ Molecules
%A G. Reinaudi
%A C. B. Osborn
%A M. McDonald
%A S. Kotochigova
%A T. Zelevinsky
%J Physics
%D 2012
%I arXiv
%R 10.1103/PhysRevLett.109.115303
%X We have produced large samples of ultracold $^{88}$Sr$_2$ molecules in the electronic ground state in an optical lattice. The molecules are bound by 0.05 cm$^{-1}$ and are stable for several milliseconds. The fast, all-optical method of molecule creation via intercombination line photoassociation relies on a near-unity Franck-Condon factor. The detection uses a weakly bound vibrational level corresponding to a very large dimer. This is the first of two steps needed to create Sr$_2$ in the absolute ground quantum state. Lattice-trapped Sr$_2$ is of interest to frequency metrology and ultracold chemistry.
%U http://arxiv.org/abs/1206.0417v2