Atomic CP-violating polarizability

Abstract

Searches for CP violating effects in atoms and molecules provide important constrains on competing extensions to the standard model of elementary particles. In particular, CP violation in an atom leads to the CP-odd (T,P-odd) polarizability $\beta^\mathrm{CP}$: a magnetic moment $\mu^\mathrm{CP}$ is induced by an electric field $\mathcal{E}_0$ applied to an atom, $\mu^\mathrm{CP} = \beta^\mathrm{CP} \mathcal{E}_0 $. We estimate the CP-violating polarizability for rare-gas (diamagnetic) atoms He through Rn. We relate betaCP to the permanent electric dipole moment (EDM) of the electron and to the scalar constant of the CP-odd electron-nucleus interaction. The analysis is carried out using the third-order perturbation theory and the Dirac-Hartree-Fock formalism. We find that, as a function of nuclear charge Z, betaCP scales steeply as Z^5 R(Z), where slowly-varying R(Z) is a relativistic enhancement factor. Finally, we evaluate a feasibility of setting a limit on electron EDM by measuring CP-violating magnetization of liquid Xe. We find that such an experiment could provide competitive bounds on electron EDM only if the present level of experimental sensitivity to ultra-weak magnetic fields [Kominis et al., Nature 422, 596 (2003)] is improved by several orders of magnitude.