Collision cross sections for the thermalization of cold gases

Matthew D. Frye and Jeremy M. Hutson
Phys. Rev. A 89, 052705 – Published 12 May 2014

Abstract

The collision cross section that controls thermalization of gas mixtures is the transport cross section ση(1) and not the elastic cross section σel. The two are the same for pure s-wave scattering but not when higher partial waves contribute. We investigate the differences between them for prototype atomic mixtures and show that the distinction is important at energies above 100μK for LiYb and 3μK for RbYb and RbCs. For simple systems, both ση(1) and σel follow universal energy dependence that depends only on the s-wave scattering length when expressed in reduced length and energy units.

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  • Received 5 March 2014

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.89.052705

©2014 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Matthew D. Frye and Jeremy M. Hutson

  • Joint Quantum Centre (JQC) Durham/Newcastle, Department of Chemistry, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, United Kingdom

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Vol. 89, Iss. 5 — May 2014

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