Progress toward improved limits on charge-parity violation using octupole-deformed Radium atoms.

Experimental tests for permanent electric dipole moments (EDMs) are a promising path to the discovery of beyond Standard Model (BSM) physics. Specifically, the existence of a permanent EDM near current experimental limits implies charge-parity (CP) symmetry violation that cannot be explained by known sources of CP violation within the Standard Model (SM). Furthermore, the existence of such BSM sources of CP violation are strongly motivated by the observed matter-antimatter asymmetry of our universe. The neutral radium-225 atom is an excellent candidate to search for CP violation in the nuclear medium. Its relativistic electron motion and nuclear octupole-deformation enhance sensitivity to an atomic EDM arising from the Schiff moment. Building upon previous, proof-of-principle Ra-225 EDM measurements that employ laser cooling and trapping, this presentation describes experimental upgrades predicted to improve measurement precision by three orders of magnitude. Specifically, we focus on recent progress implementing improved laser cooling of Radium which aims to enhance measurement precision by greatly increasing the number of atoms trapped.