arXiv subjects

I. Agustín Aucar

Publications and source records attributed to I. Agustín Aucar.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Genuine Molecular Effects in Bound-State Quantum Electrodynamics

Quantum electrodynamics (QED) currently features prominently at the precision frontier in describing the structure of atoms and molecules. Dominant QED effects are governed by the electronic structure in the vicinity of the nucleus and are therefore generally regarded as atomic in origin, with molecular contributions largely arising from additive atomic contributions. By studying the nuclear magnetic resonance shielding tensors of thallium in Tl$X$, we reveal genuinely molecular QED effects that strongly depend on the bonding partner ($X$ = F, Cl, Br, I, At) and are absent in the Tl$^+$ ion.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2026

Probing $P,T$-Symmetry Violation with Optically Trapped Asymmetric Top Molecules

Searches for $P,T$-violating electromagnetic moments are among the most sensitive probes of physics beyond the Standard Model. Extending beyond current limits will benefit from molecules with fully controllable orientation at low electric fields, long coherence times, and laser coolability---all offered by asymmetric top molecules (ATMs). Exploiting the intrinsic rotational $K$-doubling in ATMs and the associated long-lived ($T_1 \gtrsim 10$ s) parity doublets afforded by $C_{2v}$ symmetry and nuclear-spin statistics, these species combine large electric polarizability with long coherence times in modest laboratory fields. We study alkaline-earth(-like) monoamides, $\mathcal{M}$--NH$_2$ ($\mathcal{M}$ = Ca, Sr, Ba, Yb, Ra), which possess favorable electronic structure for laser cooling. We perform \textit{ab initio} calculations of fine and hyperfine constants, identifying the importance of relativistic effects in the spin-rotation tensor. An effective Hamiltonian then models the rotational and hyperfine structure of the vibronic ground state, quantifying electron electric dipole moment (EDM) sensitivities and identifying feasible measurement schemes. We compute the effect of external fields and identify engineered clock transitions that suppress sensitivity to external perturbations while retaining strong EDM sensitivity, and characterize the magic trapping conditions that null differential light shifts in an optical trap. Under these conditions we project a statistical electron-EDM sensitivity over an order of magnitude beyond current best experimental limits, with further gains available from increased molecule number and coherence time. Our results establish asymmetric top molecules as a tunable platform for sensitive symmetry-violation measurements with long coherence times.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2026

Parity violation effects in helical osmocene: theoretical analysis and experimental prospects

We present a computational investigation of the parity-violating (PV) contributions to the vibrational transitions and nuclear magnetic resonance shieldings of helical osmocene. A number of promising transitions within the spectral window of currently available sub-Hz metrology-grade lasers are identified, exhibiting high intensities and parity violation shifts of up to 7 Hz. We discuss the prospects for the synthesis of this compound and for subsequent ultra-precise mid-IR spectroscopy towards the first detection of parity violation in a chiral molecule.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2025

Prospects for measuring the electron's electric dipole moment with polyatomic molecules in an optical lattice

We present the conceptual design of an experiment to measure the electron's electric dipole moment (eEDM) using $^{138}$BaOH molecules in an optical lattice. The BaOH molecule is laser-coolable and highly sensitive to the eEDM, making it an attractive candidate for such a precision measurement, and capturing it in an optical lattice offers potentially very long coherence times. We study possibilities and limitations of this approach, identify the most crucial limiting factors and ways to overcome them. The proposed apparatus can reach a statistical error of $10^{-30}\,e\,$cm by measuring spin precession on a total number of $5 \times 10^9$ molecules over a span of 120 days.

physics.atom-ph↗

arXiv2025

Relativistic and quantum electrodynamics effects on NMR shielding tensors of Tl$X$ ($X$ = H, F, Cl, Br, I, At) molecules

Results of relativistic calculations of nuclear magnetic resonance shielding tensors ($σ$) for the thallium monocation (Tl$^+$), thallium hydride (TlH) and thallium halides (TlF, TlCl, TlBr, TlI, and TlAt) are presented as obtained within a four-component polarization propagator formalism and a two-component linear response approach within the zeroth-order regular approximation. Additionally, some quantum electrodynamical (QED) effects on those NMR shieldings are estimated. A strong dependence of $σ$(Tl) on the bonding partner is found, together with a very weak dependence of QED effects with them. In order to explain the trends observed, the excitation patterns associated with relativistic $ee$ (or paramagnetic-like) and $pp$ (or diamagnetic-like) contributions to $σ$ are analyzed. For this purpose, also the electronic spin-free and spin-dependent contributions are separated within the two-component zeroth-order regular approximation, and the influence of spin-orbit coupling on involved molecular orbitals is studied, which allows for a thorough understanding of the underlying mechanisms.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2024

$\mathcal{P,T}$-odd effects in YbCu, YbAg and YbAu

In this work, the molecular enhancement factors of the $\mathcal{P,T}$-odd interactions involving the electron electric dipole moment ($W_\mathrm{d}$) and the scalar-pseudoscalar nucleon-electron couplings ($W_\mathrm{s}$) are computed for the ground state of the bimetallic molecules YbCu, YbAg and YbAu. These systems offer a promising venue for creating cold molecules by associating laser cooled atoms. The relativistic coupled-cluster approach is used in the calculations and a thorough uncertainty analysis is performed to give accurate and reliable uncertainties to the obtained values. Furthermore, an in-depth investigation of the different electronic structure effects that determine the magnitude of the calculated enhancement factors is carried out, and two different schemes for computing $W_\mathrm{d}$ are compared. The recommended values for the enhancement factors are $(13.24\pm0.03)\times10^{24}\frac{h\,\text{Hz}}{e\,\text{cm}}$, $(12.15\pm0.08)\times10^{24}\frac{h\,\text{Hz}}{e\,\text{cm}}$ and $(2.13\pm0.28)\times10^{24}\frac{h\,\text{Hz}}{e\,\text{cm}}$ for $W_\mathrm{d}$, and $(-48.36\pm0.18)\;h\,\text{kHz}$, $(-45.51\pm0.43)\;h\,\text{kHz}$ and $(5.31\pm1.80)\;h\,\text{kHz}$ for $W_\mathrm{s}$, for YbCu, YbAg and YbAu, respectively.

physics.chem-ph↗

arXiv2022

Relativistic and QED corrections to one-bond indirect nulcear spin-spin couplings in X$_2^{2+}$ and X$_3^{2+}$ ions (X = Zn, Cd, Hg)

The indirect nuclear spin-spin coupling tensor, $\mathbf J$, between mercury nuclei in Hg-containing systems can be of the order of few kHz and one of the largest measured. We conduct an analysis of the physics behind the electronic mechanisms that contribute to the one- and two-bond couplings $^n {\mathbf J}_{\mathrm{Hg}-\mathrm{Hg}}$ ($n=1, 2$). We performed calculations for $J$-couplings in X$_2^{2+}$ and $X_3^{2+}$ ions ($X$ = Zn, Cd, Hg), within polarization propagator theory, using the random phase approximation (RPA) and the pure zeroth order approximation (PZOA), with Dirac-Hartree-Fock (DHF) and Dirac-Kohn-Sham (DKS) orbitals, both at four-component and ZORA levels. We show that the "paramagnetic-like" mechanism contribute with more than 99.98\% to the total isotropic component of the coupling tensor. By means of an analysis of the molecular and atomic orbitals involved in the total value of the response function, we find that the $s$-type valence atomic orbitals have a predominant role in the description of the coupling. This fact allows us to develop an effective model from which quantum electrodynamics (QED) effects on $J$-coupling in the aforementioned ions can be estimated. The estimated QED corrections were found in the interval $(0.7; ~ 1.7)$\% of the total relativistic effect on isotropic one-bond $^1 {\mathbf J}$ coupling and from the interval $(-0.2; ~ -0.4)$\%, in Zn-containing ions, to $(-0.8; ~ -1.2)$\%, in Hg-containing ions, of the total isotropic coupling constant in the studied systems. We also show that estimated QED corrections cast a visible dependence on the nuclear charge $Z$ of each atom $X$ in the form of a power-law $\propto Z^5$.

physics.chem-ph↗