  We consider collisional properties of polyatomic aromatic hydrocarbon
molecules immersed into ultracold atomic gases and investigate intermolecular
interactions of exemplary benzene, naphthalene, and azulene with alkali-metal
(Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs) and alkaline-earth-metal (Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba) atoms. We apply
the state-of-the-art \textit{ab initio} techniques to compute the potential
energy surfaces (PESs). We use the coupled cluster method restricted to single,
double, and noniterative triple excitations to reproduce the correlation energy
and the small-core energy-consistent pseudopotentials to model the scalar
relativistic effects in heavier metal atoms. We also report the leading
long-range isotropic and anisotropic dispersion and induction interaction
coefficients. The PESs are characterized in detail and the nature of
intermolecular interactions is analyzed and benchmarked using symmetry-adapted
perturbation theory. The full three-dimensional PESs are provided for selected
systems within the atom-bond pairwise additive representation and can be
employed in scattering calculations. Presented study of the electronic
structure is the first step towards the evaluation of prospects for sympathetic
cooling of polyatomic aromatic molecules with ultracold atoms. We suggest
azulene, an isomer of naphthalene which possesses a significant permanent
electric dipole moment and optical transitions in the visible range, as a
promising candidate for electric field manipulation and buffer-gas or
sympathetic cooling.
