Escaping from an Ultracold Inferno: The Ultracold KRb Dimer Reaction

Micheline Soley, Shodor Education Foundation, Inc.

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Ultracold chemistry, reactions that occur below one milliKelvin, provide an opportunity for applications from quantum computers to investigations of fundamental constants of nature. The ultracold temperatures of the reactions offer the chance to control reactions at the quantum level. Among ultracold chemical reactions, the ultracold KRb dimer reaction (2KRb → K2 + Rb2) is particularly interesting because of the extreme difference between the ultracold temperature of the incoming reactants and the hot temperature of the colliding atoms.

The disparate temperatures give rise to the question of whether classical or quantum effects prevail. Time-dependent quantum dynamical simulations are computationally intensive, so much so that the reaction is difficult to simulate even on supercomputers. Knowledge of whether the reaction can be simulated classically can help bring simulation of ultracold reactions within reach. With the aid of supercomputers, I am exploring the application of complex absorbing potentials and R-matrix theory for the prediction and analysis of the ultracold KRb dimer reaction.