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arXiv:0906.1031 · Physical Review A

Continuous measurement feedback control of a Bose-Einstein condensate using phase-contrast imaging

Stuart S. Szigeti, Michael Hush, Andre R. R. Carvalho, J. J. Hope

Published Jul 27, 2009• 56 citations
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Abstract

We consider the theory of feedback control of a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) confined in a harmonic trap under a continuous measurement constructed via nondestructive imaging. A filtering theory approach is used to derive a stochastic master equation (SME) for the system from a general Hamiltonian based upon system-bath coupling. Numerical solutions for this SME in the limit of a single atom show that the final steady-state energy is dependent upon the measurement strength, the ratio of photon kinetic energy to atomic kinetic energy, and the feedback strength. Simulations indicate that for a weak measurement strength, feedback can be used to overcome heating introduced by the scattering of light, thereby allowing the atom to be driven toward the ground state.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.80.013614

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We consider the theory of feedback control of a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) confined in a harmonic trap under a continuous measurement constructed via nondestructive imaging. A filtering theory approach is used to derive a stochastic master equation (SME) for the system from a general Hamiltonian based upon system-bath coupling. Numerical solutions for this SME in the limit of a single atom show that the final steady-state energy is dependent upon the measurement strength, the ratio of photon kinetic energy to atomic kinetic energy, and the feedback strength. Simulations indicate that for a weak measurement strength, feedback can be used to overcome heating introduced by the scattering of light, thereby allowing the atom to be driven toward the ground state.
We apply quantum filtering and control to a particle in a harmonic trap under continuous position measurement, and show that a simple static feedback law can be used to cool the system. The final steady state is Gaussian and dependent on the feedback strength and coupling between the system and probe. In the limit of weak coupling, this final state becomes the ground state. An earlier model by Haine et al. [Phys. Rev. A 69, 13605 (2004)] without measurement backaction showed dark states: states that did not display error signals, thus remaining unaffected by the control. This paper shows that for a realistic measurement process this is not true, which indicates that a Bose-Einstein condensate may be driven toward the ground state from any arbitrary initial state.
Off-resonant optical imaging is a popular method for continuous monitoring of a Bose–Einstein condensate. However, the disturbance caused by scattered photons places a serious limitation on the lifetime of such continuously monitored condensates. In this paper, we demonstrate that a new choice of feedback control can overcome the heating effects of the measurement backaction. In particular, we show that the measurement backaction caused by off-resonant optical imaging is a multi-mode quantum-field effect, as the entire heating process is not seen in single-particle or mean-field models of the system. Simulating such continuously monitored systems is possible with the number-phase Wigner particle filter, which currently gives both the highest precision and largest timescale simulations amongst competing methods. It is a hybrid between the leading techniques for simulating non-equilibrium dynamics in condensates and particle filters for simulating high-dimensional non-Gaussian filters in the field of engineering. The new control scheme will enable long-term continuous measurement and feedback on one of the leading platforms for precision measurement and the simulation of quantum fields, allowing for the possibility of single-shot experiments, adaptive measurements and robust state-preparation and manipulation.
Weak measurement in tandem with real-time feedback control is a new route toward engineering novel nonequilibrium quantum matter. Here we develop a theoretical toolbox for quantum feedback control of multicomponent Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs) using backaction-limited weak measurements in conjunction with spatially resolved feedback. Feedback in the form of a single-particle potential can introduce effective interactions that enter into the stochastic equation governing system dynamics. The effective interactions are tunable and can be made analogous to Feshbach resonances-spin independent and spin dependent-but without changing atomic scattering parameters. Feedback cooling prevents runaway heating due to measurement backaction and we present an analytical model to explain its effectiveness. We showcase our toolbox by studying a two-component BEC using a stochastic mean-field theory, where feedback induces a phase transition between easy-axis ferromagnet and spin-disordered paramagnet phases. We present the steady-state phase diagram as a function of intrinsic and effective spin-dependent interaction strengths. Our result demonstrates that closed-loop quantum control of Bose-Einstein condensates is a powerful tool for quantum engineering in cold-atom systems.
Nondestructive imaging of spinor Bose-Einstein condensates (BEC) presents new opportunities for observing and manipulating macroscopic quantum phenomena in real time. In this talk I theoretically study harmonically trapped two-component BECs subject to weak measurement via phase contrast imaging. I discuss the application of weak measurement theory to spatially extended condensates and present a stochastic Gross-Pitaevskii equation for the condensate order parameter. I then examine the stability of spin-polarized and spin-unpolarized phases of the condensate subject to continuous weak measurement. Additionally, I demonstrate how weak measurement can be used to track the position of a domain wall between spin-polarized regions. I quantify the effects of measurement backaction on the stochastic dynamics of the domain wall and discuss how domain wall dynamics could be observed in experiment.
Abstract We theoretically investigate measurement-based feedback control over the motional degrees of freedom of an oblate quasi-2D atomic Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) subject to continuous density monitoring. We develop a linear-quadratic-Gaussian (LQG) model that describes the multi-mode dynamics of the condensate's collective excitations under continuous measurement and control. Crucially, the multi-mode cold-damping feedback control we consider uses a realistic state-estimation scheme that does not rely upon a particular model of the atomic dynamics. We present analytical results showing that collective excitations can be cooled to below single-phonon average occupation (ground-state cooling) across a broad parameter regime, and identify the conditions under which the lowest steady-state phonon occupation is asymptotically achieved. Further, we develop multi-objective optimization methods that explore the trade-off between cooling speed and the final energy of the cloud, and provide numerical simulations demonstrating the ground-state cooling of the lowest ten motional modes above the condensate ground state. Our investigation provides concrete guidance on the feedback control design and parameters needed to experimentally realize a feedback-cooled BEC.
The linewidth of an atom laser is limited by density fluctuations in the Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) from which the atom laser beam is outcoupled. In this paper we show that a stable spatial mode for an interacting BEC can be generated using a realistic control scheme that includes the effects of the measurement backaction. This model extends the feedback theory, based on a phase-contrast imaging setup, presented by Szigeti, Hush, Carvalho, and Hope [Phys. Rev. A 80, 013614 (2009)]. In particular, it is applicable to a BEC with large interatomic interactions and solves the problem of inadequacy of the mean-field (coherent state) approximation by utilizing a fixed number state approximation. Our numerical analysis shows the control to be more effective for a condensate with a large nonlinearity.