An optical tweezer array of ultracold polyatomic molecules

Abstract

Polyatomic molecules have rich structural features that make them uniquely suited to applications in quantum information science, quantum simulation, ultracold chemistry, and searches for physics beyond the Standard Model. However, a key challenge is fully controlling both the internal quantum state and the motional degrees of freedom of the molecules. Here, we demonstrate the creation of an optical tweezer array of individual polyatomic molecules, CaOH, with quantum control of their internal quantum state. The complex quantum structure of CaOH results in a non-trivial dependence of the molecules' behavior on the tweezer light wavelength. We control this interaction and directly and nondestructively image individual molecules in the tweezer array with >90% fidelity. The molecules are manipulated at the single internal quantum state level, thus demonstrating coherent state control in a tweezer array. The platform demonstrated here will enable a variety of experiments using individual polyatomic molecules with arbitrary spatial arrangement.