Alignment transport between ultracold polar molecules

Abstract

We propose an array of ultracold polar molecules as a platform to study alignment transport between molecules. We envision a polar molecule being aligned with an intense off-resonant laser field whose alignment migrates to a nearby molecule due to dipole–dipole interactions. Our results show that the transport of the alignment is due to a complex interplay between electric field-driven excitations and dipole–dipole interactions. All mechanisms for alignment transfer are elucidated and analyzed. Using NaCs as a prototype molecule, we find that the time for alignment transfer is (10 μs), which makes the phenomena readily observable in the lab.