Vortex-lattice dynamics in rotating spinor Bose-Einstein condensates

We observe interlaced square vortex lattices in rotating dilute-gas spinor Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC). After preparing a hexagonal vortex lattice in a one-component BEC in an internal atomic state |1, we coherently transfer a fraction of the superfluid to a different state |2. The subsequent evolution of this pseudo-spin-1/2 superfluid towards a state of offset square lattices involves an intriguing interplay of phase-separation and -mixing dynamics, both macroscopically and on the length scale of the vortex cores, and a stage of vortex turbulence. The stability of the square structure is proved by its response to applied shear perturbations. An interference technique shows the spatial offset between the two vortex lattices. Vortex cores in either component are filled by fluid of the other component, such that the spin-1/2 order parameter forms a Skyrmion lattice.     

Vortices in small Bose or Fermi systems with repulsive interactions

For rotating Bose-Einstein condensates, the occurrence of vortices has been much discussed in the Gross-Pitaevskii approach. Here, we study vortex formation in finite systems with few particles for weak and repulsive two-body interactions, by numerical diagonalization. Vortex formation is surprisingly similar for both (spinless) bosonic and fermionic particles. Breaking the rotational invariance of the Hamiltonian of the system reveals the vortex patterns. A transformation from a many-fermion to a many-boson state is proposed.     

Polarization and propagation of polariton condensates

With the use of the generalized Gross-Pitaevskii equation it is shown that exciton polaritons in semiconductor microcavities form a linearly polarized condensate having two branches of the excitation spectrum. The splitting between these branches is strongly anisotropic. This anisotropy noticeably affects the real-space dynamics of polariton condensates.     

Rogue waves in exciton–polariton condensates under homogeneous pumping

We predict the emergence of rogue wave solutions in one-dimensional exciton–polariton condensates under homogeneous pumping. We model the condensate dynamics in a microwire using the dissipative Gross–Pitaevskii equation for the polariton field, with considers attractive nonlinearity, coupled to the rate equation of the excitonic reservoir density. With the help of the direct ansatz method and similarity transformation, deformed first order rogue wave solutions are constructed and its dynamics analyzed. We show that the deformed rogue wave has a curved background controlled by the pump power and the strength of the nonlinear interaction of polaritons. Moreover, the maximal population of the polaritons appears where high energy of rogue wave is concentrated.     

Half vortices in exciton polariton condensates

It is shown that vortices in linearly polarized polariton condensates in planar semiconductor microcavities carry two winding numbers (k, m). These numbers can be either integer or half-integer simultaneously. Four half-integer vortices (1/2, 1/2), (-1/2, -1/2), (1/2, -1/2), and (-1/2, 1/2) are anisotropic, possess the smallest energy, and define the Kosterlitz-Thouless transition temperature. The condensate concentration remains finite within the core of the half vortex and the condensate polarization becomes fully circular in the core center.     

Internal Structure of Vortices in a Two-Component Exciton-Polariton Condensate

Vortex solutions of coupled Gross–Pitaevskii equations for a two-component Bose–Einstein condensate of exciton polaritons have been described theoretically with the inclusion of the dependence of the Rabi splitting energy on the density of the exciton component. It has been shown that the inclusion of blueshift leads to a considerable decrease in the densities of both components of the condensate. The spatial profiles of excitons and photons in the polariton system, as well as the energy of vortex excitation formation, have been calculated taking into account nonlinear corrections.     

Vortex precession in Bose-Einstein condensates: observations with filled and empty cores

We have observed and characterized the dynamics of singly quantized vortices in dilute-gas Bose-Einstein condensates. Our condensates are produced in a superposition of two internal states of 87Rb, with one state supporting a vortex and the other filling the vortex core. Subsequently, the state filling the core can be partially or completely removed, reducing the radius of the core by as much as a factor of 13, all the way down to its bare value of the healing length. The corresponding superfluid rotation rates, evaluated at the core radius, vary by a factor of 150, but the precession frequency of the vortex core about the condensate axis changes by only a factor of 2.     

Dynamics of Bose-Einstein condensates near Feshbach resonance in external potential

We review our recent theoretical advances in the dynamics of Bose-Einstein condensates with tunable interactions using Feshbach resonance and external potential. A set of analytic and numerical methods for Gross-Pitaevskii equations are developed to study the nonlinear dynamics of Bose-Einstein condensates. Analytically, we present the integrable conditions for the Gross-Pitaevskii equations with tunable interactions and external potential, and obtain a family of exact analytical solutions for one- and two-component Bose-Einstein condensates in one and two-dimensional cases. Then we apply these models to investigate the dynamics of solitons and collisions between two solitons. Numerically, the stability of the analytic exact solutions are checked and the phenomena, such as the dynamics and modulation of the ring dark soliton and vector-soliton, soliton conversion via Feshbach resonance, quantized soliton and vortex in quasi-two-dimensional are also investigated. Both the exact and numerical solutions show that the dynamics of Bose-Einstein condensates can be effectively controlled by the Feshbach resonance and external potential, which offer a good opportunity for manipulation of atomic matter waves and nonlinear excitations in Bose-Einstein condensates.     

Formation and decay of vortex lattices in Bose-Einstein condensates at finite temperatures

The dynamics of vortex lattices in stirred Bose-Einstein condensates have been studied at finite temperatures. The decay of the vortex lattice was observed nondestructively by monitoring the centrifugal distortions of the rotating condensate. The formation of the vortex lattice could be deduced from the increasing contrast of the vortex cores observed in ballistic expansion. In contrast to the decay, the formation of the vortex lattice is insensitive to temperature change.     

Observation of hybrid soliton vortex-ring structures in Bose-Einstein condensates

We present the experimental discovery of compound structures comprising solitons and vortex rings in Bose-Einstein condensates. We examine both their creation via soliton-vortex collisions and their subsequent development, which is largely governed by the dynamics of interacting vortex rings. A theoretical model in three-dimensional cylindrical symmetry is also presented.     

Interactions in confined polariton condensates

We investigate the effect of interactions in zero-dimensional polariton condensates. The shape of the condensate wave function is shown to be modified by repulsive interactions with the reservoir of uncondensed excitons. In large micropillar cavities, when uncondensed excitons are located at the center, the condensate is ejected toward the pillar edges. The same effect results in the generation of optical traps in wire cavities. Once polariton condensates are spatially separated from the excitonic reservoir, spectral signatures of polariton-polariton interactions within the condensate are evidenced.     

Exciton–polariton condensation

We review, aiming at an audience of final year undergraduates, the phenomena observed in, and properties of, microcavity exciton–polariton condensates. These are condensates of mixed light and matter, consisting of superpositions of photons in semiconductor microcavities and excitons in quantum wells. Because of the imperfect confinement of the photon component, exciton–polaritons have a finite lifetime, and have to be continuously re-populated. Therefore, exciton–polariton condensates lie somewhere between equilibrium Bose–Einstein condensates and lasers. We review in particular the evidence for condensation, the coherence properties studied experimentally, and the wide variety of spatial structures either observed or predicted to exist in exciton–polariton condensates, including quantised vortices and other coherent structures. We also discuss the question of superfluidity in a non-equilibrium system, reviewing both the experimental attempts to investigate superfluidity to date, and the theoretical suggestions of how it may be further elucidated.     

High precision solutions to quantized vortices within Gross–Pitaevskii equation

The dynamics of vortices in Bose–Einstein condensates of dilute cold atoms can be well formulated by Gross–Pitaevskii equation. To better understand the properties of vortices, a systematic method to solve the nonlinear differential equation for the vortex to very high precision is proposed. Through two-point Padé approximants, these solutions are presented in terms of simple rational functions, which can be used in the simulation of vortex dynamics. The precision of the solutions is sensitive to the connecting parameter and the truncation orders. It can be improved significantly with a reasonable extension in the order of rational functions. The errors of the solutions and the limitation of two-point Padé approximants are discussed. This investigation may shed light on the exact solution to the nonlinear vortex equation.     

Dynamics of a superfluid vortex and the Magnus force

We study the dynamics of a vortex in superfluid He4. This is carried out by deriving the effective Lagrangian for the center of the vortex by starting with the time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau formalism. From the resultant equation of motion for a vortex, we arrive at a novel aspect for the Magnus force which has long been known in fluid dynamics. This force has a geometric origin and is expected to occur in other form of condensates such as vortex excitations for quantum Hall fluids or ferromagnets. We also consider the force of non geometric origin, the pinning force coming from the impurity.     

Polariton condensates at room temperature

We review the recent developments of the polariton physics in microcavities featuring the exciton–photon strong coupling at room temperature, and leading to the achievement of room-temperature polariton condensates. Such cavities embed active layers with robust excitons that present a large binding energy and a large oscillator strength, i.e. wide bandgap inorganic or organic semiconductors, or organic molecules. These various systems are compared, in terms of figures of merit and of common features related to their strong oscillator strength. The various demonstrations of polariton laser are compared, as well as their condensation phase diagrams. The room-temperature operation indeed allows a detailed investigation of the thermodynamic and out-of-equilibrium regimes of the condensation process. The crucial role of the spatial dynamics of the condensate formation is discussed, as well as the debated issue of the mechanism of stimulated relaxation from the reservoir to the condensate under non-resonant excitation. Finally the prospects of polariton devices are presented.     

Vortex Dynamics in Spin-1 Spin-orbit-coupled Rotating Bose-Einstein Condensates

International Journal of Theoretical Physics - We study the vortex dynamics of spin-orbit-coupled (SOC) spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates by numerical simulations of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation....     

Renormalized dispersion of elementary excitations in spinor polariton condensates

We analyse the polarization of spinor polariton condensates and corresponding dispersions of elementary excitations. We have considered the effects of magnetic field induced splitting in circular polarizations and residual splitting in linear polarizations in the ground state provided by the cavity asymmetry. We show that anisotropic polariton–polariton interactions fully compensate the Zeeman splitting in circular polarizations below the critical magnetic field, thus leading to the spin-Meissner effect for the polariton condensates. We also analyzed the effect of polariton–polariton interactions on the stability of the gap in linear polarizations characteristic for anisotropic microcavities. It was shown that in realistic systems this gap increases with concentration of the particles, thus contributing to the stability of the pinning of linear polarization of photoemission in semiconductor microcavities for pump intensities above the stimulation threshold.     

Statistics of two-dimensional point vortices and high-energy vortex states

Results from the theory ofU-statistics are used to characterize the microcanonical partition function of theN-vortex system in a rectangular region for largeN, under various boundary conditions, and for neutral, asymptotically neutral, and nonneutral systems. Numerical estimates show that the limiting distribution is well matched in the region of major probability forN larger than 20. Implications for the thermodynamic limit are discussed. Vortex clustering is quantitatively studied via the average interaction energy between negative and positive vortices. Vortex states for which clustering is generic (in a statistical sense) are shown to result from two modeling processes: the approximation of a continuous inviscid fluid by point vortex configurations; and the modeling of the evolution of a continuous fluid at high Reynolds number by point vortex configurations, with the viscosity represented by the annihilation of close positive-negative vortex pairs. This last process, with the vortex dynamics replaced by a random walk, reproduces quite well the late-time features seen in spectral integration of the 2d Navier-Stokes equation.     

Stability of giant vortices in quantum liquids

We show how giant vortices can be stabilized for strong external potentials in Bose-Einstein condensates. We illustrate the formation of these vortices thanks to the Ginzburg-Landau dissipative dynamics for two typical potentials in two spatial dimensions. The giant vortex stability is studied for the particular case of a rotating cylindrical hard wall. Due to axial symmetry the minimization of the perturbed energy is simplified into a one dimensional relaxation dynamics. Solving this 1D minimization problem, we observe that giant vortices are either never stable, or only stable in a finite frequency range. Finally we obtain the marginal curve for the minimum frequency needed to observe a giant vortex.     

偶极-偶极相互作用下玻色-爱因斯坦凝聚体中涡旋的非线性动力学研究

基于平均场理论和分裂算符谱算法, 研究了偶极-偶极相互作用下玻色爱因斯坦凝聚体中涡旋的非线性动力学. 研究发现外势运动速度小于临界值时,偶极-偶极相互作用对系统涡旋的非线性动力学影响较小,而外势运动速度超过临界速度时,偶极-偶极相互作用对涡旋的非线性动力学影响很大,可使系统产生涡旋对、涡旋偶极子和简单涡旋,并使它们形成涡街.