ULTRACOLD & ULTRAFAST: MAKING AND MANIPULATING ULTRACOLD MOLECULES WITH TIME-DEPENDENT LASER FIELDS

While ultracold matter brought quantum effects onto the macroscopic scale, ultrafast lasers made quantum dynamical phenomena observable in real-time. Bringing the two together seems natural and holds the promise of employing quantum interferences in an unprecedented way. Photoassociation provides an optimal framework for the merger since in principle it relies only on the presence of optical transitions. Combining it with coherent control where the potential energy surfaces governing the dynamics can be 'shaped', a general route toward stable ultracold molecules is obtained.