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arXiv:0912.2170 · Journal of Physics B Atomic Molecular and Optical Physics

Magneto-optical Feshbach resonance: controlling cold collision with quantum interference

Bimalendu Deb

Published Apr 6, 2010• 15 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We propose a method of controlling two-atom interaction using both magnetic and laser fields. We analyse the role of quantum interference between magnetic and optical Feshbach resonances in controlling cold collision. In particular, we demonstrate that this method allows us to suppress inelastic and enhance elastic scattering cross sections. Quantum interference is shown to modify significantly the threshold behaviour and resonant interaction of ultracold atoms. Furthermore, we show that it is possible to manipulate not only the spherically symmetric s-wave interaction but also the anisotropic higher partial-wave interactions which are particularly important for high-temperature superfluid or superconducting phases of matter.

DOI
10.1088/0953-4075/43/8/085208

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Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE•Oct 29, 2010•1 citation
We propose a method of controlling two-atom interaction using both magnetic and laser fields. We analyse the role of quantum interference between magnetic and optical Feshbach resonances in controlling cold collision. In particular, we demonstrate that this method allows us to suppress inelastic and enhance elastic scattering cross sections. Quantum interference is shown to modify significantly the threshold behaviour and resonant interaction of ultracold atoms. Furthermore, we show that it is possible to manipulate not only the spherically symmetric s-wave interaction but also the anisotropic higher partial-wave interactions which are particularly important for high-temperature superfluid or superconducting phases of matter.
In this work we investigate the potential of controlling cold (O(K)−mK) and ultracold (mK-μK) atom-molecule collisions by tuning scattering states across Feshbach resonances using magnetic fields. We are interested in particular in the prospect of suppressing the often undesirable inelastic collisions. The He-O_2 system provides the vehicle for our study. We calculate bound and quasi-bound states of several isotopic combinations, including their Zeeman structure, to reveal the underlaying pattern for easier characterization of quasi-bound states in terms of rigorous and approximately good quantum numbers. These calculations also help us locate the fields at which zero-energy resonances will occur. Scattering calculations are then performed for collisions of 3^He and 4^He with {16}^O_2 at fixed (1 μK) energy but varying magnetic field. The field is varied to sweep the scattering state across resonance. At low and ultralow energies we enter the Wigner threshold regime where the S-partial wave dominates the wavefunction. The cross sections, and the real and imaginary parts of the scattering length, vary dramatically across resonance. Their profiles are used to analyze the resonances. In a highlight of our results we show that dramatic suppression of inelastic cross sections occur for 4^He-{16}^O_2 . The resonances are relatively wide (of order 100 Gauss), with suppression of inelastic scattering over a similarly wide range of fields and for temperatures ranging from 10 mK down to 1 μK. We conclude that under certain conditions it is possible to almost completely eliminate inelastic collisions. This is potentially very important for cooling techniques, such as evaporative and sympathetic cooling, that require efficient elastic cross sections. Suppression of inelastic collisions can not only increase thermalization efficiency but it can also result in longer trap-lifetimes by reducing transitions to untrapable states.
This Thesis describes new mechanisms for controlling elastic and inelastic collisions of ultracold atoms and molecules with static electromagnetic and laser fields. The dynamical properties of ultracold atoms are usually tuned in experiments by applying an external magnetic field to induce a Feshbach resonance. The work presented in this Thesis demonstrates the possibility of inducing and manipulating Feshbach resonances with electric fields. We discuss in detail the mechanisms of electric-field-induced resonances in ultracold mixtures of alkali metal atoms and demonstrate that electric fields may shift and split the magnetic resonances. We show that electric fields may spin up the collision complex of ultracold atoms and induce anisotropic scattering which may be exploited in experiments on many-body dynamics of ultracold gaseous mixtures. The mechanisms of electric-field-induced resonances described in this Thesis allow for two-dimensional control of inter-particle interactions, leading to total control over ultracold gases. To guide future experiments, we generate accurate interaction potentials for ultracold Li--Rb mixtures by fitting positions and widths of experimentally measured Feshbach resonances. Ultracold atomic and molecular gases can be confined by laser fields in one or two dimensions which produces an optical lattice of ultracold particles. We develop a multichannel scattering theory for collisions of atoms and molecules in two dimensions and explore the effects of the confining laser potential on inelastic and reactive collisions of ultracold atoms and molecules in a 1D optical lattice. We show that ultracold collisions can be controlled in a quasi-2D geometry by varying the orientation of a magnetic field with respect to the confinement plane normal and demonstrate that the threshold energy dependence of cross sections for inelastic collisions in an optical lattice can be tuned by varying the confining potential and the magnetic field. Our results show that applying laser confinement in one dimension may stabilize ultracold systems with large scattering lengths, which may open up interesting opportunities for studies of ultracold controlled chemistry and might lead to a new research direction of ultracold chemistry in restricted geometries.
In the absence of inelastic scattering, Feshbach resonances produce poles in scattering lengths and very large peaks in elastic cross-sections. However, inelastic scattering removes the poles. Whenever the resonant state is coupled comparably to the elastic and inelastic channels, the scattering length exhibits only a small oscillation and peaks in cross-sections are significantly suppressed. A resonant scattering length is defined to characterize the amplitude of the oscillation, and is shown to be small for many collisions of ultracold molecules. The results suggest that cross-sections for some ultracold collision processes will be much less sensitive to details of the potential than has been expected.
We present a theory for manipulation of ddd-wave interaction of cold atoms with two lasers strongly driving two photoassociative transitions. The theory predicts the occurrence of a coherence between two excited ro-vibrational bound states due to the photoassociative dipole couplings of ground-state ddd-wave scattering state to the bound states. We show that this excited-state coherence significantly influences atom-atom interaction. In particular, this leads to the enhancement of ddd-wave elastic scattering and to the suppression of inelastic scattering. In the presence of an sss-wave magnetic Feshbach resonance, the two lasers can couple the sss-wave resonance with the ddd-wave scattering state, leading to the further enhancement in ddd-wave scattering at relatively low energy. Our numerical calculations based on realistic parameters show that ddd-wave manipulation would be most effective in case of atoms having excited diatomic states with narrow natural linewidth. We estimate that at an energy of 100 $\ensuremath{\mu}$K the inelastic scattering rate in Yb can be reduced to 20 s${}^{\ensuremath{-}1}$ while the elastic scattering rate can be two orders of magnitude larger.
Inelastic collisions of ultracold atoms or molecules are analyzed using very general arguments. In free space, the deactivation rate can be enhanced or suppressed together with the scattering length of the corresponding elastic collision via a Feshbach resonance, and by interference of deactivation of the closed and open channels. In reduced dimensional geometries, the deactivation rate decreases with decreasing collision energy and does not increase with resonant elastic scattering length. This has broad implications; e.g., stabilization of molecules in a strongly confining two-dimensional optical lattice, since collisional decay of excited states due to inelastic collisions is suppressed. The relation of our results to the Lieb-Liniger model for bosonic atoms is addressed.
Collisions of atoms with formation of Feshbach resonances in the presence of laser field are considered. The elastic and inelastic scattering cross sections are calculated. The laser field leads to second resonance in elastic scattering, broadening of resonances, and arising of interference between resonant and potential scattering. The effects associated with interference of the two channels of decay of bound system of two atoms (a molecule) in laser field are studied. It is shown that if the energy equals that of the lower stable Stark-shifted level plus the energy of two photons, the resonance is quenched. It is also shown that with the increase in two-photon effective interaction the pattern of resonance scattering changes essentially.