Construction of a Superconducting Zeeman-Sisyphus Decelerator

We describe the construction of a superconducting Zeeman-Sisyphus decelerator, designed to slow to rest beams of magnetic species using approximately three photon scatters. The decelerator relies on large energy shifts in the magnetic field and optical pumping between magnetic sublevels to remove energy. This apparatus comprises two sets of 3 T superconducting solenoid magnets, capable of removing 2-3 Kelvin per stage for molecules with a ²Σ ground state. We discuss in detail the design of the magnets, the cryogenic system that supports them, and the expected performance of the decelerator. We discuss the application of this scheme to slowing beams of YbOH molecules to the capture velocity of a magneto-optical trap.