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arXiv:1306.4255 · Physical Review Letters

Spinor Dynamics in an Antiferromagnetic Spin-1 Thermal Bose Gas

Hyewon Pechkis, Jonathan Wrubel, Arne Schwettmann, Paul F. Griffin, Ryan Barnett, Eite Tiesinga, Paul D. Lett

Published Jul 9, 2013• 47 citations
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Abstract

We present experimental observations of coherent spin-population oscillations in a cold thermal, Bose gas of spin-1 23Na atoms. The population oscillations in a multi-spatial-mode thermal gas have the same behavior as those observed in a single-spatial-mode antiferromagnetic spinor Bose-Einstein condensate. We demonstrate this by showing that the two situations are described by the same dynamical equations, with a factor of 2 change in the spin-dependent interaction coefficient, which results from the change to particles with distinguishable momentum states in the thermal gas. We compare this theory to the measured spin population evolution after times up to a few hundreds of ms, finding quantitative agreement with the amplitude and period. We also measure the damping time of the oscillations as a function of magnetic field.

DOI
10.1103/physrevlett.111.025301

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We observe coherent spin oscillations in an antiferromagnetic spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensate of sodium. The variation of the spin oscillations with magnetic field shows a clear signature of nonlinearity, in agreement with theory, which also predicts anharmonic oscillations near a critical magnetic field. Measurements of the magnetic phase diagram agree with predictions made in the approximation of a single spatial mode. The oscillation period yields the best measurement to date of the sodium spin-dependent interaction coefficient, determining that the difference between the sodium spin-dependent s-wave scattering lengths a(f=2) - a(f=0) is 2.47+/-0.27 Bohr radii.
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Compared to single-component Bose-Einstein condensates, spinor Bose-Einstein condensates display much richer dynamics. In addition to density oscillations, spinor Bose-Einstein condensates exhibit intriguing spin dynamics that is associated with population transfer between different hyperfine components. This paper analyzes the validity of the widely employed single-mode approximation when describing the spin dynamics in response to a quench of the system Hamiltonian. The single-mode approximation assumes that the different hyperfine states all share the same time-independent spatial mode. This implies that the resulting spin Hamiltonian only depends on the spin interaction strength and not on the density interaction strength. Taking the spinor sodium Bose-Einstein condensate in the f=1f=1f=1 hyperfine manifold as an example and working within the mean-field theory framework, it is found numerically that the single-mode approximation misses, in some parameter regimes, intricate details of the spin and spatial dynamics. We develop a physical picture that explains the observed phenomenon. Moreover, using that the population oscillations described by the single-mode approximation enter into the effective potential felt by the mean-field spinor, we derive a semiquantitative condition for when dynamical mean-field induced corrections to the single-mode approximation are relevant. Our mean-field results have implications for a variety of published and planned experimental studies.
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We discuss the static and dynamic magnetic properties of cold quantum gas systems. In particular, we investigate and analyze the ground state properties and dynamics of F = 2 spinor Bose-Einstein condensates of 87Rb. The rich physics of these systems is governed by an interplay between mean-field-driven spin dynamics and hyperfine-changing losses in addition to interactions with atoms in the thermal cloud. We find conversion rates on the order of 10-12 cm3 s-1 for spin-changing collisions within the F = 2 manifold and spin-dependent loss rates on the order of 10-13 cm3 s-1 for hyperfine-changing collisions. Our data leads to the conclusion that the F = 2 ground state of 87Rb is polar, while we measure the F = 1 ground state to be ferromagnetic. As remarkable features in the spin dynamics we observe spinor oscillations and a delayed formation of new mF-condensate components.