Progress on a More Sensitive Measurement of the Atomic Electric Dipole Moment of Radium-225 and Radium-223

A non-zero permanent atomic electric dipole moment (EDM) indicates a time-reversal (T) violation. Assuming CPT symmetry, this makes non-zero permanent EDMs a signature of CP violation, and EDM measurements a potential source of evidence of new physics. In large-Z atoms with octopole deformed nuclei, such as Radium-225 and Radium-223, the observable EDM effect is enhanced, effectively improving the precision of the measurement. In the Ra EDM experiment, Radium atoms are vaporized, laser cooled, trapped, and transported between a pair of high-voltage electrodes. Here we report progress towards trapping Radium-223 for the first time and measuring its EDM with the Ra EDM apparatus. In addition, a variety of upgrades that improve its sensitivity are discussed. These upgrades include the construction of a new atomic beamline, which implements atom trapping on a more efficient cooling transition. We expect this improvement to increase our trapping efficiency by two orders of magnitude.