The cold, dark secrets of the Universe in few-body physics

Abstract

Historically, atoms and molecules have proved an excellent playground for physicists aiming to understand many of the physical phenomena that govern the world around us. Atomic emission lines – the colours of light emitted by atoms when they absorb sufficient energy – have proved an important demonstration of the role quantum mechanics plays in describing atomic behaviour. It was also these spectral lines that led to the discovery of new types of electronic configurations Ríos has been using methods originally developed for atomic and molecular physics to re-examine some of the biggest challenges in physics.