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arXiv:1303.1139 · Physical Review Letters

Observing the Onset of Effective Mass

R. Chang, Shreyas Potnis, Ramón Ramos, Chao Zhuang, Matin Hallaji, Alex Hayat, Federico Duque-Gomez, John E. Sipe, Aephraim M. Steinberg

Published May 2, 2014• 32 citations
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Abstract

The response of a particle in a periodic potential to an applied force is commonly described by an effective mass, which accounts for the detailed interaction between the particle and the surrounding potential. Using a Bose-Einstein condensate of (87)Rb atoms initially in the ground band of an optical lattice, we experimentally show that the initial response of a particle to an applied force is in fact characterized by the bare mass. Subsequently, the particle response undergoes rapid oscillations and only over time scales that are long compared to those of the interband dynamics is the effective mass observed to be an appropriate description. Our results elucidate the role of the effective mass on short time scales, which is relevant for example in the interaction of few-cycle laser pulses with dielectric and semiconductor materials.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.112.170404

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The response of a particle in a periodic potential to an applied force is commonly described by an effective mass, which accounts for the detailed interaction between the particle and the surrounding potential. Using a Bose-Einstein condensate of (87)Rb atoms initially in the ground band of an optical lattice, we experimentally show that the initial response of a particle to an applied force is in fact characterized by the bare mass. Subsequently, the particle response undergoes rapid oscillations and only over time scales that are long compared to those of the interband dynamics is the effective mass observed to be an appropriate description. Our results elucidate the role of the effective mass on short time scales, which is relevant for example in the interaction of few-cycle laser pulses with dielectric and semiconductor materials.
Here, we report on the first experimental observation of effective mass dynamics using a Bose-Einstein condensate of Rubidium-87 atoms initially in the ground band of an optical lattice. By studying the response of the particles to an abruptly applied force, we show that, while the long-time behaviour is described by the effective mass, the initial response is indifferent to the presence of the lattice. Our results represent an important contribution towards a full understanding of the ultrafast response of electrons in a solid, relevant for example in the interaction of few-cycle laser pulses with dielectric and semiconductor materials.
Bose-Einstein condensates of dilute gases provide a rich and versatile platform to study both single-particle and many-body quantum phenomena. This thesis describes several experiments using a Bose-Einstein condensate of Rb-87 as a model system to study novel matter-wave effects that traditionally arise in vastly different systems, yet are difficult to access. We study the scattering of a particle from a repulsive potential barrier in the non-asymptotic regime, for which the collision dynamics are on-going. Using a Bose-Einstein condensate interacting with a sharp repulsive potential, two distinct transient scattering effects are observed: one due to the momentary deceleration of particles atop the barrier, and one due to the abrupt discontinuity in phase written on the wavepacket in position-space, akin to quantum reflection. Both effects lead to a redistribution of momenta, resulting in a rich interference pattern that may be used to reconstruct the single-particle wavefunction. In a second experiment, we study the response of a particle in a periodic potential to an applied force. By abruptly applying an external force to a Bose-Einstein condensate in a one-dimensional optical lattice, we show that the initial response of a particle in a periodic potential is in fact characterized by the bare mass, and only over timescales long compared to that of interband dynamics is the usual effective mass an appropriate description. This breakdown of the effective mass description on fast timescales is difficult to observe in traditional solid state systems due to their large bandgaps and fast timescale of interband dynamics. Both these experiments make use of the condensate's long coherence length, and the ability to shape and modulate the external potential on timescales fast compared to the particle dynamics, allowing for observation of novel matter-wave effects.
We study the behavior of the expectation value of the acceleration of a particle in a one-dimensional periodic potential when an external homogeneous force is suddenly applied. The theory is formulated in terms of modified Bloch states that include the interband mixing induced by the force. This approach allows us to understand the behavior of the wave packet, which responds with a mass that is initially the bare mass, and subsequently oscillates around the value predicted by the effective mass. If Zener tunneling can be neglected, the expression obtained for the acceleration of the particle is valid over time scales of the order of a Bloch oscillation, which are of interest for experiments with cold atoms in optical lattices. We discuss how these oscillations can be tuned in an optical lattice for experimental detection.
We experimentally study the dynamics of a weakly interacting Bose-Einstein condensate of cesium atoms in a 1D optical lattice with a periodic driving force. The time evolution is analysed after a quench of the driving strength which leads to an inversion of the dispersion relation in the lattice band and to a redistribution of atoms in the 1st Brillouin zone (BZ). We use the concept of a negative effective mass and the resulting changes to the effective trapping potential and interaction strength to explain the time evolution of wave packets with weak repulsive interaction. In addition, the formation of stable wave packets with a negative effective mass is observed at the center of the BZ, and we interpret these as gap solitons in a periodically driven system.
Experiments on atomic Bose-Einstein condensates inside quasi-one-dimensional optical lattices and related developments in the realization of atom lasers are currently at the frontiers in atomic physics. We give a short review of theoretical progress in evaluating the coherent transport of matter in such configurations, which has been based on an adaptation of the Wannier function representation of quasi-particle states in periodic potentials and on the use of advanced numerical methods for the solution of the time-dependent Gross-Pitaevskii equation. We present various methods by which the band structure of the elementary excitations of a periodic condensate may be probed and describe in terms of Bloch oscillations the coherent emission of matter pulses from a condensate inside an optical lattice under the force of gravity. A harmonic force can be applied to a condensate inside a magnetic trap by a rapid displacement of the center of the trap and a transition of the condensate from superfluid to dissipative behavior is driven by superposing an optical lattice. Finally, in the superfluid regime the combination of a constant force and a harmonic force in the presence of an optical lattice drives Josephson-type oscillations of the condensate, leading to observable resonances and multimode behavior.
[[abstract]]We study the instabilities, Landau and dynamical instabilities, that are two mechanisms responsible for the breakdown of superfluidity in Bose-Einstein condensates interacting with a one-dimensional optical lattice. An effective-mass Gross-Pitaevskii equation was used to calculate the excitation spectrum and the condensate density of Bose-Einstein condensates in a weak periodic potential. After the condensate velocities greater than the speed of sound, we observe a decreasing of the condensate density, which is the onset of Landau instability. The condensate is dissipated, but not completely, from colliding with the thermal atom cloud. For even higher velocities of the condensate, we find a fast decreasing of the condensate density until full removal of the condensate. The regime of totally removing of the condensate is happened at the inverse effective mass of the condensate becoming zero or negative, where the condensate is on the dynamical instability.