An electron electric dipole moment (eEDM) directly violates time-reversal symmetry, a fact which has far reaching implications for physics beyond the Standard Model. An experiment using trapped molecular ions offers high sensitivity because of the large effective electric fields and long coherence times that are possible. We demonstrate precision spectroscopy on many trapped HfF+ ions in a radio frequency quadrupole trap with rotating electric and magnetic fields. The spectroscopy performed is a Ramsey type experiment between spin states of the metastable 3∆1 electronic state and has a coherence time exceeding 1 second. We have collected and analyzed over\ 200 hours of Ramsey spectroscopy data taken under a variety of experimental conditions. We identify several systematic errors that could potentially affect an eEDM measurement and estimate the size of these interloping effects. By collecting data under pairs of conditions where the eEDM has opposing signs (e.g. performing Ramsey spectroscopy on the two ∧-doublets) we are able to take frequency differences that can suppress some of these systematic effects. Although our data set includes runs where we have intentionally varied experimental parameters to study systematic effects, we achieve a 1σ statistical sensitivity of 2.76 \texttimes 10-28 cm and place a 1σ upper bound on the size of systematic effects of 2.82 \texttimes 10-28 e.cm. Finally we present a preliminary upper bound on the eEDM of |de| \< 4.6 \texttimes 10-28 e.cm with 90\% confidence.
CY - Boulder DA - 2016-02 N2 -An electron electric dipole moment (eEDM) directly violates time-reversal symmetry, a fact which has far reaching implications for physics beyond the Standard Model. An experiment using trapped molecular ions offers high sensitivity because of the large effective electric fields and long coherence times that are possible. We demonstrate precision spectroscopy on many trapped HfF+ ions in a radio frequency quadrupole trap with rotating electric and magnetic fields. The spectroscopy performed is a Ramsey type experiment between spin states of the metastable 3∆1 electronic state and has a coherence time exceeding 1 second. We have collected and analyzed over\ 200 hours of Ramsey spectroscopy data taken under a variety of experimental conditions. We identify several systematic errors that could potentially affect an eEDM measurement and estimate the size of these interloping effects. By collecting data under pairs of conditions where the eEDM has opposing signs (e.g. performing Ramsey spectroscopy on the two ∧-doublets) we are able to take frequency differences that can suppress some of these systematic effects. Although our data set includes runs where we have intentionally varied experimental parameters to study systematic effects, we achieve a 1σ statistical sensitivity of 2.76 \texttimes 10-28 cm and place a 1σ upper bound on the size of systematic effects of 2.82 \texttimes 10-28 e.cm. Finally we present a preliminary upper bound on the eEDM of |de| \< 4.6 \texttimes 10-28 e.cm with 90\% confidence.
PB - University of Colorado Boulder PP - Boulder PY - 2016 EP - 152 TI - Measuring the Electron Electric Dipole Moment with Trapped Molecular Ions VL - Ph.D. ER -