Laser slowing of CaF molecules to near the capture velocity of a molecular MOT

Laser slowing of CaF molecules down to the capture velocity of a magneto-optical trap (MOT) for molecules is achieved. Starting from a two-stage buffer gas beam source, we apply frequency-broadened white-light slowing and observe approximately 6x10^4 CaF molecules with velocities near 10,m/s. CaF is a candidate for collisional studies in the mK regime. This work represents a significant step towards magneto-optical trapping of CaF.