Decoherence-driven cooling of a degenerate spinor Bose gas

We investigate the relationship between the coherence of a partially Bose-condensed spinor gas and its temperature. We observe cooling of the normal component driven by decoherence as well as the effect of temperature on decoherence rates.     

Transition temperatures of the trapped ideal spinor Bose gas

The thermodynamic properties of the trapped ideal spinor Bose gas are studied in details with the constraints of fixed total number of atoms N, and magnetization M. The double transition temperatures, their corresponding corrections due to finite particle number, and the population of each component are investigated. The generalization to the ideal spinor Bose gas of hyperfine quantum number F is also discussed. We propose that the order and disorder parameters to describe the symmetry broken of condensation.     

Resonant amplification of quantum fluctuations in a spinor gas

Bose-Einstein condensates of atoms with non-zero spin are known to constitute an ideal system to investigate fundamental properties of magnetic superfluids. More recently it was realized that they also provide the fascinating opportunity to investigate the macroscopic amplification of quantum and classical fluctuations. This is strikingly manifested in a sample initially prepared in the m _F = 0 state, where spin-changing collisions triggered by quantum fluctuations may lead to the creation of correlated pairs in m _F = ±1. We show that the pair creation efficiency is strongly influenced by the interplay between the external trapping potential and the Zeeman effect. It thus reflects the confinement-induced magnetic field dependence of elementary spin excitations of the condensate. Remarkably, pair production in our experiments is therefore characterized by a multi-resonant dependence on the magnetic field. Pair creation at these resonances acts as strong parametric matter-wave amplifier. Depending on the resonance condition, this amplification can be extremely sensitive or insensitive to the presence of seed atoms. We show that pair creation at a resonance which is insensitive to the presence of seed atoms is triggered purely by quantum fluctuations and thus the system acts as a matter-wave amplifier for the vacuum state.     

Generalized quantum hydrodynamics of a trapped dilute Bose gas

Quantal kinetic equations for particle and current densities of condensate and non-condensate in a confined Bose-condensed fluid are set up by expansion of the one-body density matrix about its diagonal. A microscopic Landau equation for superfluid flow in the inhomogeneous system is derived. Current-density functional theory in the local (long-wavelength) approximation is then used to propose a unified treatment of various damping mechanisms.     

Vortex lattice transitions in cyclic spinor condensates

We study the energetics of vortices and vortex lattices produced by rotation in the cyclic phase of F=2 spinor condensates. In addition to the familiar triangular lattice predicted by Tkachenko for 4He, many more complex lattices appear in this system as a result of the spin degree of freedom. In particular, we predict a magnetic-field-driven transition from a triangular lattice to a honeycomb lattice. Other transitions and lattice geometries are driven at constant field by changes in the temperature-dependent ratio of charge and spin stiffnesses, including a transition through an aperiodic vortex structure. Finally, we compute the renormalization of the ratio of the spin and charge stiffnesses from thermal fluctuations using a nonlinear sigma model analysis.     

Fully quantum mechanical moment of inertia of a mesoscopic ideal Bose gas

The superfluid fraction of an atomic cloud is defined using the cloud's response to a rotation of the external potential, i.e. the moment of inertia. A fully quantum mechanical calculation of this moment is based on the dispersion of L_z instead of quasi-classical averages. In this paper we derive analytical results for the moment of inertia of a small number of non-interacting Bosons using the canonical ensemble. The required symmetrized averages are obtained via a representation of the partition function by permutation cycles. Our results are useful to discriminate purely quantum statistical effects from interaction effects in studies of superfluidity and phase transitions in finite samples. Received 30 June 2000     

Bright Vortex Solitons in Bose Condensates

We suggest the possibility of observing and studying bright vortex solitons in attractive Bose-Einstein condensates in three dimensions with a radial trap. Such systems lie on the verge of critical stability and we discuss the conditions of their stability. We study the interaction between two such solitons. Unlike the text-book solitons in one dimension, the interaction between two radially trapped and axially free three-dimensional solitons is inelastic in nature and involves exchange of particles and deformation in shape. The interaction remains repulsive for all phase between them except for 0.     

High winding number of topological phase in non-unitary periodic quantum walk

Topological phases and their associated multiple edge states are studied by constructing a one-dimensional non-unitary multi-period quantum walk with parity-time symmetry. It is shown that large topological numbers can be obtained when choosing an appropriate time frame. The maximum value of the winding number can reach the number of periods in the one-step evolution operator. The validity of the bulk–edge correspondence is confirmed, while for an odd-period quantum walk and an even-period quantum walk, they have different configurations of the 0-energy edge state and π-energy edge state. On the boundary, two kinds of edge states always coexist in equal amount for the odd-period quantum walk, however three cases including equal amount, unequal amount or even only one type may occur for the even-period quantum walk.     

Stable and Unstable Vortex Knots in a Trapped Bose Condensate

The dynamics of a quantum vortex toric knot T_P,Q and other analogous knots in an atomic Bose condensate at zero temperature in the Thomas–Fermi regime is considered in the hydrodynamic approximation. The condensate has a spatially inhomogeneous equilibrium density profile ρ(z, r) due to the action of an external axisymmetric potential. It is assumed that z_*= 0, r_*= 1 is the point of maximum of function rρ(z, r), so that δ(rρ) ≈ –(α–)z²/2–(α + )(δr)²/2 for small z and δr. The geometrical configuration of a knot in the cylindrical coordinates is determined by a complex 2πP-periodic function A(?, t) = Z(?, t) + i[R(?, t))–1]. When |A| ? 1, the system can be described by relatively simple approximate equations for P rescaled functions \({W_n}(\varphi ) \propto A(2\pi n + \varphi ):i{W_{n,t}} = - ({W_{n,\varphi \varphi }} + \alpha {W_n} - \in W_n^*)/2 - \sum\nolimits_{j \ne n} {1/(W_n^* - W_j^*)} \). For = 0, examples of stable solutions of type W _n = θ _n (?–γt)exp(–iωt) with a nontrivial topology are found numerically for P = 3. In addition, the dynamics of various unsteady knots with P = 3 is modeled, and the tendency to the formation of a singularity over a finite time interval is observed in some cases. For P = 2 and small ≠ 0, configurations of type W₀–W₁ ≈ B₀exp(iζ) + C(B₀, α)exp(–iζ) + D(B₀, α)exp(3iζ), where B₀ > 0 is an arbitrary constant, ζ = k₀?–Ω₀t + ζ0, k₀ = Q/2, and Ω₀ = (–α)/2–2/B₀², which rotate about the z axis, are investigated. Wide stability regions for such solutions are detected in the space of parameters (α, B₀). In unstable zones, a vortex knot may return to a weakly excited state.     

Thermodynamics of the quantum sine-Gordon model with finite winding number

Thermodynamics of the quantum sine-Gordon model is formulated in the presence of finite winding number. Several asymptotic cases are studied analytically.     

Equilibrium superradiance in a Bose gas

A model of free₄He atoms interacting with radiation exhibits an equilibrium phase transition in which the atomic ground-state Bose condensation is coupled to condensations of virtual photons and virtually excited atoms of the same macroscopic wavelength. The condensed phase has a twofold polarization degeneracy. It is suggested that this might furnish a mechanism for a discrete symmetry-related phase degeneracy of superfluid liquid⁴He required to explain the transition according to Tisza's generalized Gibbsian thermodynamics. A more realistic model would require inclusion of repulsive interactions.Supported in part by the National Science Foundation, Grant DMR76-17467.     

Dynamics and thermodynamics in spinor quantum gases

We discuss magnetism in spinor quantum gases theoretically and experimentally with emphasis on temporal dynamics of the spinor order parameter in the presence of an external magnetic field. In a simple coupled Gross–Pitaevskii picture we observe a dramatic suppression of spin dynamics due to quadratic Zeeman dephasing. In view of an inhomogeneous density profile of the trapped condensate we present evidence of spatial variations of spin dynamics. In addition we study spinor quantum gases as a model system for thermodynamics of Bose–Einstein condensation. As a particular example we present measurements on condensate magnetisation due to the interaction with a thermal bath. PACS 03.75.Mn; 03.75.Fi; 34.50.Pi     

Normal-superfluid interaction dynamics in a spinor bose gas

Coherent behavior of spinor Bose-Einstein condensates is studied in the presence of a significant uncondensed (normal) component. Normal-superfluid exchange scattering leads to near-perfect local alignment between the spin fields of the two components. We observe that, through this spin locking, spin-domain formation in the condensate is vastly accelerated as the spin populations in the condensate are entrained by large-amplitude spin waves in the normal component.     

Probing the quantum state of a 1D Bose gas using off-resonant light scattering

We present a theoretical treatment of coherent light scattering from an interacting 1D Bose gas at finite temperatures. We show how this can provide a nondestructive measurement of the atomic system states. The equilibrium states are determined by the temperature and interaction strength, and are characterized by the spatial density-density correlation function. We show how this correlation function is encoded in the angular distribution of the fluctuations of the scattered light intensity, thus providing a sensitive, quantitative probe of the density-density correlation function and therefore the quantum state of the gas.     

Spin waves in a one-dimensional spinor bose gas

We study a one-dimensional (iso)spin 1/2 Bose gas with repulsive delta-function interaction by the Bethe Ansatz method and discuss the excitations above the polarized ground state. In addition to phonons the system features spin waves with a quadratic dispersion. We compute analytically and numerically the effective mass of the spin wave and show that the spin transport is greatly suppressed in the strong coupling regime, where the isospin-density (or "spin charge") separation is maximal. Using a hydrodynamic approach, we study spin excitations in a harmonically trapped system and discuss prospects for future studies of two-component ultracold atomic gases.     

Impurity in a three-dimensional unitary Bose gas

By using simple and efficient method we discuss properties of a single impurity immersed in three-dimensional Bose gas with the interaction between particles tuned to unitary limit. Particularly, adopting the mean-field-like approximation we present the first estimations for the low-momentum parameters of the impurity spectrum, namely, the binding energy, the effective mass and the quasiparticle residue both for repulsive and attractive Bose polarons in the unitary gas.     

Anisotropic superfluidity in a dipolar Bose gas

We study the superfluid character of a dipolar Bose-Einstein condensate (DBEC) in a quasi-two dimensional geometry. We consider the dipole polarization to have some nonzero projection into the plane of the condensate so that the effective interaction is anisotropic in this plane, yielding an anisotropic dispersion relation. By performing direct numerical simulations of a probe moving through the DBEC, we observe the sudden onset of drag or creation of vortex-antivortex pairs at critical velocities that depend strongly on the direction of the probe's motion. This anisotropy emerges because of the anisotropic manifestation of a rotonlike mode in the system.     

Superfluidity and phase transitions in a resonant Bose gas

The atomic Bose gas is studied across a Feshbach resonance, mapping out its phase diagram, and computing its thermodynamics and excitation spectra. It is shown that such a degenerate gas admits two distinct atomic and molecular superfluid phases, with the latter distinguished by the absence of atomic off-diagonal long-range order, gapped atomic excitations, and deconfined atomic π-vortices. The properties of the molecular superfluid are explored, and it is shown that across a Feshbach resonance it undergoes a quantum Ising transition to the atomic superfluid, where both atoms and molecules are condensed. In addition to its distinct thermodynamic signatures and deconfined half-vortices, in a trap a molecular superfluid should be identifiable by the absence of an atomic condensate peak and the presence of a molecular one.