EDMcubed (Electric Dipole measurement using Molecules in a Matrix): Towards a measurement of the electron electric dipole moment using BaF molecules embedded in a solid Ar matrix

Improved measurements of the electron electric dipole moment (eEDM) will strongly constrain the parameter space of new physics theories. Over the last decade, polar molecules have become established as the most promising systems for eEDM searches, due to the large internal electric fields experienced by an eEDM in these molecules. The sensitivity of eEDM searches is determined by the coherence time available for measuring eEDM-induced electron spin precession, as well as by the total number of molecules available over the course of a measurement. We present our progress in implementing a measurement scheme [1] that will use a large number of barium-monofluoride molecules embedded into a solid argon matrix. The large number of BaF molecules embedded in our Ar solid is expected to lead to excellent statistical precision, and the method offers an array of reversals and controls for cleanly suppressing systematic effects to a level commensurate with the improved statistical precision. Experimental progress in creating and studying BaF doped solids will be presented.

[1] A. C. Vutha, M. Horbatsch and E. A. Hessels, Phys. Rev. A 98, 032513 (2018).