Invited
Orienting and aligning the rotation of ground state hydrogen molecules.

Performing quantum state selective experiments of molecule-surface collisions provides unique insight into the interaction potential. One particularly tricky molecular property to control and measure is the rotational projection states, i.e. the orientation of the rotational plane of the molecule. Previous data was mostly restricted to photo-excited/paramagnetic species. In this talk, I will describe a unique molecular beam apparatus which allows us to coherently control and measure the rotational orientation of ground state molecules [1]. I will present new experimental results for H₂ colliding with the surface of lithium fluoride crystal, showing that this simple and affordable crystal can be used as a molecular rotation polarizer.

[1] Nature Communications, 8, 15357 (2017).