Trapped Bose–Einstein condensates with quadrupole–quadrupole interactions

We numerically investigate the ground-state properties of a trapped Bose–Einstein condensate with quadrupole–quadrupole interaction.We quantitatively characterize the deformations of the condensate induced by the quadrupolar interaction.We also map out the stability diagram of the condensates and explore the trap geometry dependence of the stability.     

On the issue of zero point energy in Bose–Einstein condensates

Following on our earlier work in this area, here we examine in some detail the physical mechanism involved in the Bose–Einstein condensation process. In particular we emphasise the significance of the zero value of the chemical potential at and below the critical temperature. The molar zero-point energy (ZPE) for an ideal gas of He⁴ atoms in our new analysis is estimated and found to be very close to that calculated for an ideal Fermi gas of He³ atoms under the same conditions. This gives numerical support to our theory. We also show how the theory is consistent with the presence of a density maximum in liquid He⁴.     

Spinor Bose–Einstein condensates

An overview of the physics of spinor and dipolar Bose–Einstein condensates (BECs) is given. Mean-field ground states, Bogoliubov spectra, and many-body ground and excited states of spinor BECs are discussed. Properties of spin-polarized dipolar BECs and those of spinor–dipolar BECs are reviewed. Some of the unique features of the vortices in spinor BECs such as fractional vortices and non-Abelian vortices are delineated. The symmetry of the order parameter is classified using group theory, and various topological excitations are investigated based on homotopy theory. Some of the more recent developments in a spinor BEC are discussed.     

Time-domain Ramsey interferometry with Bose–Einstein condensates

We report on the observation of time-domain interference with Bose–Einstein condensates, by means of a double separated oscillator technique. We discuss the decay of the Ramsey oscillations amplitude, that in our system occurs on a time scale of tens of microseconds. To elucidate the origin of this fast decay, we compare the behaviour of a condensate with that of a thermal cloud.     

Solitons in Bose–Einstein condensates

The Gross–Pitaevskii equation (GPE) describing the evolution of the Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC) order parameter for weakly interacting bosons supports dark solitons for repulsive interactions and bright solitons for attractive interactions. After a brief introduction to BEC and a general review of GPE solitons, we present our results on solitons that arise in the BEC of hard-core bosons, which is a system with strongly repulsive interactions. For a given background density, this system is found to support both a dark soliton and an antidark soliton (i.e., a bright soliton on a pedestal) for the density profile. When the background has more (less) holes than particles, the dark (antidark) soliton solution dies down as its velocity approaches the sound velocity of the system, while the antidark (dark) soliton persists all the way up to the sound velocity. This persistence is in contrast to the behaviour of the GPE dark soliton, which dies down at the Bogoliubov sound velocity. The energy–momentum dispersion relation for the solitons is shown to be similar to the exact quantum low-lying excitation spectrum found by Lieb for bosons with a delta-function interaction.     

Beliaev theory of spinor Bose–Einstein condensates

By generalizing the Green’s function approach developed by Beliaev [S.T. Beliaev, Sov. Phys. JETP 7 (1958) 299; S.T. Beliaev, Sov. Phys. JETP 7 (1958) 289], we study effects of quantum fluctuations on the energy spectra of spin-1 spinor Bose–Einstein condensates, in particular, of a ⁸⁷Rb condensate in the presence of an external magnetic field. We find that due to quantum fluctuations, the effective mass of magnons, which characterizes the quadratic dispersion relation of spin-wave excitations, increases compared with its mean-field value. The enhancement factor turns out to be the same for two distinct quantum phases: the ferromagnetic and polar phases, and it is a function of only the gas parameter. The lifetime of magnons in a spin-1 ⁸⁷Rb spinor condensate is shown to be much longer than that of phonons due to the difference in their dispersion relations. We propose a scheme to measure the effective mass of magnons in a spinor Bose gas by utilizing the effect of magnons’ nonlinear dispersion relation on the time evolution of the distribution of transverse magnetization. This type of measurement can be applied, for example, to precision magnetometry.     

The physics of trapped dilute-gas Bose–Einstein condensates

The experimental realisation of Bose–Einstein condensates of dilute atomic vapours has generated immense interest and activity in this field. Here, we present a review of recent theoretical research into the properties of trapped dilute-gas Bose–Einstein condensates. Topics covered include ground-state properties of trapped condensates, elementary excitations, light scattering properties, tests of broken gauge symmetry, and the atom laser.     

Phase fluctuations in Bose–Einstein condensates

We demonstrate the existence of phase fluctuations in elongated Bose–Einstein condensates (BECs) and study the dependence of these fluctuations on the system parameters. A strong dependence on temperature, atom number, and trapping geometry is observed. Phase fluctuations directly affect the coherence properties of BECs. In particular, we observe instances where the phase-coherence length is significantly smaller than the condensate size. Our method of detecting phase fluctuations is based on their transformation into density modulations after ballistic expansion. An analytic theory describing this transformation is developed. Received: 13 July 2001 / Revised version: 28 September 2001 / Published online: 23 November 2001     

Spin–orbit coupled Bose–Einstein condensates with Rydberg-dressing interaction

Interaction between Rydberg atoms can be used to control the properties of interatomic interaction in ultracold gases by weakly dressing the atoms with a Rydberg state. Here we investigate the effect of the Rydberg-dressing interaction on the ground-state properties of a Bose–Einstein condensate imposed by Raman-induced spin–orbit coupling. We find that,in the case of SU(2)-invariant s-wave interactions, the gas is only in the plane-wave phase and the zero-momentum phase is absent. In particular, we also predict an unexpected magnetic stripe phase composed of two plane-wave components with unequal weight when s-wave interactions are non-symmetric, which originates from the Rydberg-dressing interaction.     

Bose–Einstein condensates in magnetic waveguides

In this article, we describe an experimental system for generating Bose–Einstein condensates and controlling the shape and motion of a condensate by using miniaturised magnetic potentials. In particular, we describe the magnetic trap setup, the vacuum system, the use of dispenser sources for loading a high number of atoms into the magneto-optical trap, the magnetic transfer of atoms into the microtrap, and the experimental cycle for generating Bose–Einstein condensates. We present first results on outcoupling of condensates into a magnetic waveguide and discuss influences of the trap surface on the ultra-cold ensembles. Received: 21 August 2002 / Revised version: 10 December 2002 / Published online: 26 February 2003 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +49-7071/295-829, E-mail: fortagh@pit.uni-tuebingen.de     

On Bose–Einstein condensates in the Thomas–Fermi regime

We study a multi-group version of the mean-field or Curie–Weiss spin model. For this model, we show how, analogously to the classical (single-group) model, the three temperature regimes are defined. Then we use the method of moments to determine for each regime how the vector of the group magnetisations behaves asymptotically. Some possible applications to social or political sciences are discussed.

     

Stability and instability properties of rotating Bose–Einstein condensates

We consider the mean-field dynamics of Bose–Einstein condensates in rotating harmonic traps and establish several stability and instability properties for the corresponding solution. We particularly emphasize the difference between the situation in which the trap is symmetric with respect to the rotation axis and the one where this is not the case.

     

Instability domain of Bose–Einstein condensates with quantum fluctuations and three-body interactions

Through a Gross–Pitaevskii equation comprising cubic, quartic, residual, and quintic nonlinearities, we examine the modulational instability (MI) of Bose–Einstein condensates at higher densities in the presence of quantum fluctuations. We obtain an explicit time-dependent criteria for the MI and the instability domains of the condensates. Solitons are generated by suitably exciting the MI, and their stability is analyzed. We find that quantum fluctuations can completely change the instability of condensates by reversing the nature of the effective two-body interactions. The interplay between three-body interactions and quantum fluctuations is shown. Numerical simulations performed agree with analytical predictions.     

Light—induced nonlinear effects of dispersion relation of ultracold Bose gas

We have investigated the optical properties of Λ-configuration ultracold dense Bose gas interacting with two laser pulses, which usually result in electromagnetically induced transparency. With the nonrelativistic quantum electrodynamics and taking into account the atomic dipole－dipole interaction and local field effect, we have derived the Maxwell－Bloch equations of the system. The dispersion relation of an ultracold Bose gas has been obtained and the light-induced nonlinear effects have been analysed. The light-induced nonlinear effects are different from the effects induced by two-body collision of Bose－Einstein condensation atoms which have a frequency shift of transparent window.     

Collision dynamics of two Bose–Einstein condensates in the presence of Raman coupling

A collision of two-component Bose-Einstein condensates in the presence of Raman coupling is proposed and studied by numerical simulations. Raman transitions are found to be able to reduce collision-produced irregular excitations by forming a time-averaged attractive optical potential. Raman transitions also support a kind of dark soliton pair in two-component Bose-Einstein condensates. Soliton pairs and their remnant single solitons are shown to be controllable by adjusting the initial relative phase between the two colliding condensates or the two-photon detuning of Raman transitions. Received: 5 February 2001 / Published online: 27 April 2001     

Generating periodic interference in Bose–Einstein condensates

The interference between two condensates with repulsive interaction is investigated numerically by solving the onedimensional time-dependent Gross–Pitaevskii equation.The periodic interference pattern forms in two condensates,which are prepared in a double-well potential consisting of two truncated harmonic wells centered at different positions.Dark solitons are observed when two condensates overlap.Due to the existence of atom–atom interactions,atoms are transferred among the ground state and the excited states,which coincides with the condensate energy change.     

Three-dimensional solitons in two-component Bose–Einstein condensates

We investigate a kind of solitons in the two-component Bose–Einstein condensates with axisymmetric configurations in the R2×S1space. The corresponding topological structure is referred to as Hopfion. The spin texture differs from the conventional three-dimensional(3D) skyrmion and knot, which is characterized by two homotopy invariants. The stability of the Hopfion is verified numerically by evolving the Gross–Pitaevskii equations in imaginary time.     

Kink-like breathers in Bose–Einstein condensates with helicoidal spin–orbit coupling

We report a kind of kink-like breathers in one-dimensional Bose–Einstein condensates (BECs) with helicoidal spin–orbit coupling (SOC), on whose two sides the background densities manifest obvious difference (called kink amplitude). The kink amplitude and shape of breather can be adjusted by the strength and period of helicoidal SOC, and its atomic number in two components exchanges periodically with time. The SOC has similar influence on the kink amplitude and the exchanged atomic number, especially when the background wave number is fixed. It indicates that the oscillating intensity of breather can be controlled by adjusting initial kink amplitude. Our work showcases the great potential of realizing novel types of breathers through SOC, and deepens our understanding on the formation mechanisms of breathers in BECs.