Abstract The best upper limit for the electron electric dipole moment was recently set by the ACME collaboration. This experiment measures an electron spin-precession in a cold beam of ThO molecules in their metastable state. Improvement in the statistical and systematic uncertainties is possible with more efficient use of molecules from the source and better magnetometry in the experiment, respectively. Here, we report measurements of several relevant properties of the long-lived state of ThO, and show that this state is a very useful resource for both these purposes. TheQstate lifetime is long enough that its decay during the time of flight in the ACME beam experiment is negligible. The large electric dipole moment measured for theQstate, giving rise to a large linear Stark shift, is ideal for an electrostatic lens that increases the fraction of molecules detected downstream. The measured magnetic moment of theQstate is also large enough to be used as a sensitive co-magnetometer in ACME. Finally, we show that theQstate has a large transition dipole moment to the state, which allows for efficient population transfer between the ground state and theQstate via Stimulated Raman Adiabatic Passage (STIRAP). We demonstrate 90 % STIRAP transfer efficiency. In the course of these measurements, we also determine the magnetic moment ofCstate, the transition dipole moment, and branching ratios of decays from theCstate.
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This content will become publicly available on July 9, 2025
Stabilizing Ti 3 C 2 T x MXene flakes in air by removing confined water
MXenes have demonstrated potential for various applications owing to their tunable surface chemistry and metallic conductivity. However, high temperatures can accelerate MXene film oxidation in air. Understanding the mechanisms of MXene oxidation at elevated temperatures, which is still limited, is critical in improving their thermal stability for high-temperature applications. Here, we demonstrate that Ti C T MXene monoflakes have exceptional thermal stability at temperatures up to 600 C in air, while multiflakes readily oxidize in air at 300 C. Density functional theory calculations indicate that confined water between Ti C T flakes has higher removal energy than surface water and can thus persist to higher temperatures, leading to oxidation. We demonstrate that the amount of confined water correlates with the degree of oxidation in stacked flakes. Confined water can be fully removed by vacuum annealing Ti C T films at 600 C, resulting in substantial stability improvement in multiflake films (can withstand 600 C in air). These findings provide fundamental insights into the kinetics of confined water and its role in Ti C T oxidation. This work enables the use of stable monoflake MXenes in high-temperature applications and provides guidelines for proper vacuum annealing of multiflake films to enhance their stability.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2134607
- PAR ID:
- 10545591
- Publisher / Repository:
- Fakhraai
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Volume:
- 121
- Issue:
- 28
- ISSN:
- 0027-8424
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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