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arXiv:0910.1776 · Journal of Physics B Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics

Observing collapse in two colliding dipolar Bose–Einstein condensates

Baoqing Sun, M. S. Pindzola

Published Aug 14, 2009• 3 citations
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Abstract

We study the collision of two Bose–Einstein condensates with pure dipolar interaction. A stationary pure dipolar condensate is known to be stable when the atom number is below a critical value. However, collapse can occur during the collision between two condensates due to local density fluctuations even if the total atom number is only a fraction of the critical value. Using full three-dimensional numerical simulations, we observe the collapse induced by local density fluctuations. For the purpose of future experiments, we present the time dependence of the density distribution, energy per particle and the maximal density of the condensate. We also discuss the collapse time as a function of the relative phase between the two condensates.

DOI
10.1088/0953-4075/42/17/175301

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We study the collision of two Bose–Einstein condensates with pure dipolar interaction. A stationary pure dipolar condensate is known to be stable when the atom number is below a critical value. However, collapse can occur during the collision between two condensates due to local density fluctuations even if the total atom number is only a fraction of the critical value. Using full three-dimensional numerical simulations, we observe the collapse induced by local density fluctuations. For the purpose of future experiments, we present the time dependence of the density distribution, energy per particle and the maximal density of the condensate. We also discuss the collapse time as a function of the relative phase between the two condensates.
We investigate the collapse of a trapped dipolar Bose-Einstein condensate. This is performed by numerical simulations of the Gross-Pitaevskii equation and the novel application of the Thomas-Fermi hydrodynamic equations to collapse. We observe regimes of both global collapse, where the system evolves to a highly elongated or flattened state depending on the sign of the dipolar interaction, and local collapse, which arises due to dynamically unstable phonon modes and leads to a periodic arrangement of density shells, disks, or stripes. In the adiabatic regime, where ground states are followed, collapse can occur globally or locally, while in the nonadiabatic regime, where collapse is initiated suddenly, local collapse commonly occurs. We analyze the dependence on the dipolar interactions and trap geometry, the length and time scales for collapse, and relate our findings to recent experiments.
We investigate the collapse dynamics of a dipolar condensate of 52Cr atoms when the s-wave scattering length characterizing the contact interaction is reduced below a critical value. A complex dynamics, involving an anisotropic, d-wave symmetric explosion of the condensate, is observed. The atom number decreases abruptly during the collapse. We find good agreement between our experimental results and those of a numerical simulation of the three-dimensional Gross-Pitaevskii equation, including contact and dipolar interactions as well as three-body losses. The simulation indicates that the collapse induces the formation of two vortex rings with opposite circulations.
We investigate thermally excited, dipolar Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs). Quasiparticle excitations of the atomic cloud cause density fluctuations which can induce the collapse of the condensate if the interparticle interaction is attractive. Within a variational approach, we identify the collectively excited stationary states of the gas which form transition states on the way to the BEC's collapse. We analyze transition states with different mmm-fold rotational symmetry and identify the one which mediates the collapse. The latter's symmetry depends on the trap aspect ratio of the external trapping potential, which determines the shape of the BEC. Moreover, we present the collapse dynamics of the BEC and calculate the corresponding decay rate using transition-state theory. We observe that the thermally induced collapse mechanism is important near the critical scattering length, where the lifetime of the condensate can be significantly reduced. Our results are valid for an arbitrary strength of the dipole-dipole interaction. Specific applications are discussed for the elements 52{}^{52}52Cr, 164{}^{164}164Dy, and 168{}^{168}168Er with which dipolar BECs have been experimentally realized.
In this review we discuss the dynamics of the phase of trapped Bose–Einstein condensates. In particular we consider the phenomena of phase decoherence (termed also as phase collapse, or diffusion), and phase revival in systems of interacting atoms. We analyse the dependence of the collapse and revival times on the trap potential, dimensionality of the gas, atom number fluctuations, and on the coherent dynamics of the condensate. We show that in a class of experimentally relevant systems, the collapse time is relatively short, and in some cases vanishes in the limit of a large number of atoms, implying that the trapped Bose gas cannot sustain a well-defined quantum phase, and that the phase memory is lost on a relatively short time scale. Furthermore, we calculate the relative atom number fluctuations or a model of two interacting condensates, and show that the fluctuations are generically sub-Poissonian.