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Abstract Non‐classical features like interference are already being harnessed to control the output of chemical reactions. However, quantum entanglement which is an equally enigmatic many‐body quantum correlation can also be used as a powerful resource yet has eluded explicit attention. In this report, an experimental scheme under the crossed beam molecular dynamical setup, with the F + HD reaction, is proposed aiming to study the possible influence of entanglement within reactant pairs on the angular features of the product distribution. The aforesaid reaction has garnered interest recently, as an unusual horseshoe shape pattern in the product (HF) distribution was observed, which has been attributed to the coupling of spin and orbital degrees of freedom. An experimental scheme is proposed aiming to study the possible influence of entanglement on the necessity for the inclusion of such spin–orbit characteristics, under circumstances wherein the existence of entanglement and spin–orbit interaction is simultaneously detectable. The attainable results are further numerically simulated highlighting specific patterns corresponding to various possibilities. Such studies if extended can provide unforeseen mechanistic insight into analogous reactions, too, from the lens of quantum information.
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Controlling few-body reaction pathways using a Feshbach resonance
Abstract Gaining control over chemical reactions at the quantum level is a central goal of cold and ultracold chemistry. Here we demonstrate a method for coherently steering the reaction flux across different product spin channels for a three-body recombination process in a cloud of trapped cold atoms. We use a magnetically tunable Feshbach resonance to admix, in a controlled way, a specific spin state to the reacting collision complex. This allows us to control the reaction flux into the admixed spin channel, which can be used to alter the reaction products. We also investigate the influence of an Efimov resonance on the reaction dynamics, observing a global enhancement of three-body recombination without favouring particular reaction channels. Our control scheme can be extended to other reaction processes and could be combined with other methods, such as quantum interference of reaction paths, to achieve further tuning capabilities of few-body reactions.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2452751
- PAR ID:
- 10565707
- Publisher / Repository:
- Nature Publishing Group
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Nature Physics
- Volume:
- 21
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 1745-2473
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: p. 228-232
- Size(s):
- p. 228-232
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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