Ultracold atoms have been successfully used in quantum simulations and precision measurements. Molecules possess a richer internal structure promising new applications. However, only relatively simple molecules have been produced and employed at ultralow temperatures. This project aims to understand and harness the increasing complexity of ultracold polyatomic molecules to probe the fundamentals of chemistry and physics. We will extend the range of ultracold polyatomic molecules and their applications in controlled chemistry and precision spectroscopy. We will propose and theoretically investigate two paths: 1) association of ultracold deeply-bound diatomic molecules into ultracold weakly-bound polyatomic molecules and 2) direct cooling deeply-bound polyatomic molecules carefully selected and manipulated with electromagnetic fields. The first approach will build on established atomic techniques, which we will extend to molecular systems. The second one will employ strong fields, short pulses, and structural modifications to engineer closed transitions suitable for laser cooling. We will combine and develop novel electronic structure and quantum scattering methods enhanced by machine learning and high-performance computing. Next, we will study new applications exploiting features emerging from single-molecule and coherent control, conical intersections, and non-trivial electronic states and geometries absent in simpler systems. Applications will range from quantum-controlled chemical reactions and molecular dynamics to precision measurements of fundamental constants and their spatio-temporal variation. The realization of the project will push cold chemistry into the quantum realm and bring unprecedented complexity to ultracold physics, thus, give new insights into the physical basis of chemistry and the fundamental laws of nature. A unique experience of the PI in both quantum chemistry and ultracold atomic physics will be instrumental in achieving these goals.

The Preamble to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights speaks of the peoples of Europe who are conscious of its heritage and wish to share a peaceful future based on such common values as dignity, equality and solidarity. One of the crucial sources of these values is Classical Antiquity, which laid the foundations for many ideas shaping our contemporary world. In particular, the ancient myths and their reception build a sense of community and a code of reciprocal understanding – so important in times of growing separatist tendencies – and they permit us to address issues relevant for our societies, e.g. war (Troy), migration (Aeneas), disability (Minotaur), ecology (dryads) and pandemics (Oedipus). Even the “dark sides” of the Classics, like slavery and the discrimination of women, offer vital impulses for discussion of our current challenges, with a limited risk of trauma, for the myths are perceived as both close to and detached from our reality. This heritage of such amazing potential is vanishing, however, from school education, which loses its connection with research. We respond to this problem with a unique programme conveyed via a Handbook for high schoolers. The Handbook will draw on materials from the Our Mythical Childhood Consolidator Grant, incl. the ground-breaking animations of ancient vases. Its chapters will contain examples of myth reception from all the EU member states, along with the extra-European contexts covered by my team members and experts from Australia, Cameroon, Israel, UK, USA, etc. It will have a game format: its users will play Modern Argonauts on a voyage of discovery of the shared mythical heritage. Owing to the collaboration established by the PI, the Handbook will be promoted by such leading bodies as Fédération Internationale des Associations d’Etudes Classiques, Cambridge School Classics Project and Associazione Italiana di Cultura Classica, thus providing societies worldwide with an innovative model for research-based education.