- Assistant Professor
- Phone: 979.845.1411
- Email: karthein@tamu.edu
- Office: CYCL 331
- Karthein Lab @ A&M
- Linkedin: LinkedIn Profile
- Nuclear Structure
- Nuclear Theory
Biography
Professor Karthein's research focuses on the study of the atomic nucleus through its effects on the electron shell of short-lived atoms and molecules. Utilizing electronic orbitals that deeply penetrate the nucleus, combined with entangled states (so-called "quantum sensors") of single molecules in ion traps, allows for the measurement of fundamental effects of the Standard Model of Particle Physics and beyond.
Dr. Karthein specifically explores previously unstudied effects of the nuclear electroweak structure that violate one of the three fundamental symmetries of nature: parity (mirror) symmetry. One such effect is the nuclear anapole moment, which is expected to induce significant (~Hz-kHz) shifts in the electronic energy levels precisely measured with lasers. These shifts may be caused by new fundamental particles that mediate what is referred to as dark matter/energy, which constitutes the majority of matter and energy in the universe. Furthermore, understanding these parity-violating effects is a necessary step before investigating nuclear electric dipole moments (EDM), a time-symmetry violating effect that is orders of magnitude larger than its electron EDM counterpart. This phenomenon could address the matter-antimatter asymmetry puzzle, a major open question in physics concerning why we observe more matter than antimatter in the universe, i.e., how we can exist within the framework of the Big Bang Theory.
Karthein and collaborators conduct precision laser spectroscopy and ion trapping experiments at the U.S. Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) and its European counterpart at CERN/ISOLDE. As part of the NEPTUNE collaboration, a development platform for quantum sensing measurements on stable molecules is being commissioned at the Garcia Ruiz Lab at MIT, while a dedicated facility for quantum sensing of radioactive molecules is being established at the Karthein Lab at the Cyclotron Institute at Texas A&M University.
Moreover, the Karthein Lab develops ultra-sensitive laser spectroscopy techniques in ion traps to study the electronic structure of molecular ions produced in minuscule quantities, such as artificially created radioactive molecules that are highly sensitive to symmetry-violating nuclear effects. This research has broad implications beyond the fields of nuclear, atomic, molecular, and optical physics into quantum chemistry, the astrophysics of cold molecular clouds, and medical isotopes for cancer treatment.
Institutional Partnerships
Selected Publications
- Karthein, J., Ricketts, C. M., Garcia Ruiz, R. F., Billowes, J., Binnersley, C. L., Cocolios, T. E., ... Yordanov, D. T. (2024). Electromagnetic properties of indium isotopes illuminate the doubly magic character of 100Sn. Nature Physics. 20(11), 1719-1725.
- Karthein, J., Udrescu, S. M., Moroch, S. B., Belosevic, I., Blaum, K., Borschevsky, A., ... Ringle, R. (2024). Electroweak Nuclear Properties from Single Molecular Ions in a Penning Trap.. Physical Review Letters. 133(3), 033003.
- Arrowsmith-Kron, G., Athanasakis-Kaklamanakis, M., Au, M., Ballof, J., Berger, R., Borschevsky, A., ... Yang, X. (2024). Opportunities for fundamental physics research with radioactive molecules.. Reports on Progress in Physics (Print). 87(8), 084301-084301.
- Knig, K., Berengut, J. C., Borschevsky, A., Brinson, A., Brown, B. A., Dockery, A., ... Zaitsevskii, A. (2024). Nuclear Charge Radii of Silicon Isotopes.. Physical Review Letters. 132(16), 162502.
- Nies, L., Atanasov, D., Athanasakis-Kaklamanakis, M., Au, M., Blaum, K., Dobaczewski, J., ... Wienholtz, F. (2023). Isomeric Excitation Energy for ^{99}In^{m} from Mass Spectrometry Reveals Constant Trend Next to Doubly Magic ^{100}Sn.. Physical Review Letters. 131(2), 022502.