{
  "abstract": "Ultralong-range Rydberg molecules, formed by the interaction between a highly excited Rydberg atom and a ground-state atom, provide a unique platform for exploring quantum phenomena spanning nanometer- to micrometer distances as well as exotic few-body interactions. The molecular binding arises from electron-atom scattering, which is conventionally described by an independent s- and p-wave channels picture. Here we report the experimental observation of s-p coupling in Rb(nS)-Rb(5S) ultralong-range Rydberg molecules via high-resolution photoassociation spectroscopy. By varying the principal quantum number n from 31 to 36, we resolve an avoided crossing between the s- and p-wave molecular states: whenever a vibrational level bound by the p-wave well approaches one bound by the s-wave well in energy, the two states are mixed by the off-diagonal coupling U_sp, and the shifted s-wave level is identified, which is consistent with theoretical predictions. This mixing is most pronounced for low-node p-wave molecules, whose binding energies lie closer to those of the s-wave molecules. The resulting level repulsion and redistribution of spectral intensity reveal the mixed s-p character of ultralong-range Rydberg molecules and provide a more precise molecular spectroscopy.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2608.09950",
  "author_total": 9,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Qing Li"
    },
    {
      "name": "Shi-Yao Shao"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jun Zhang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Han-Chao Chen"
    },
    {
      "name": "Li-Hua Zhang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Bang Liu"
    },
    {
      "name": "Guang-Can Guo"
    },
    {
      "name": "Dong-Sheng Ding"
    },
    {
      "name": "Bao-Sen Shi"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5tqc60k2v9vaq.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2608.09950",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "5tqc60k2v9vaq",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.09950",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "cond-mat.quant-gas"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "physics.atom-ph"
    ],
    [
      "arxiv",
      "quant-ph"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3107|Cold Atom Physics and Bose-Einstein Condensates"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7202279278",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2608.09950",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-11-03",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5tqc60k2v9vaq.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T15:21:24Z",
      "native_id": "2608.09950",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.09950"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.quant-gas",
      "subfield": "amo"
    },
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.quant-gas",
      "subfield": "condensed-matter"
    },
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:quant-ph",
      "subfield": "quantum"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Observation of s-p Coupling in Ultralong-Range Rydberg Molecules",
  "title_text": "Observation of s-p Coupling in Ultralong-Range Rydberg Molecules",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-06T18:21:01Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/5tqc60k2v9vaq",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}