title: Formation of ultracold metastable RbCs molecules by short-range photoassociation.
abstract: Ultracold metastable RbCs molecules are observed in a double species magneto-optical trap through photoassociation near the Rb(5S(1/2)) + Cs(6P(3/2)) dissociation limit followed by radiative stabilization. The molecules are formed in their lowest triplet electronic state and are detected by resonance enhanced two-photon ionization through the previously unobserved (3)(3)Π ← a (3)Σ(+) band. The large rotational structure of the observed photoassociation lines is assigned to the lowest vibrational levels of the 0(+) or 0(-) excited states correlated to the Rb(5P(1/2)) + Cs(6S(1/2)) dissociation limit. This demonstrates the possibility of inducing direct photoassociation in heteronuclear alkali-metal molecules at a short internuclear distance, as pointed out earlier [J. Deiglmayr et al., Phys. Rev. Lett., 2008, 101, 13304].
authors.affiliation: Istituto Nazionale di Ottica, INO-CNR, U.O.S. Pisa Adriano Gozzini, Via Moruzzi 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy. carlo.gabbanini@ino.it
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gabbanini
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Dulieu