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arXiv:1407.1146 · Physical Review A

Direct probe of topological order for cold atoms

Dong-Ling Deng, Sheng-Tao Wang, Luming Duan

Published Oct 6, 2014• 47 citations
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Abstract

Cold-atom experiments in optical lattices offer a versatile platform to realize various topological quantum phases. A key challenge in those experiments is to unambiguously probe the topological order. We propose a method to directly measure the characteristic topological invariants (order) based on the time-of-flight imaging of cold atoms. The method is generally applicable to detection of topological band insulators in one, two, or three dimensions characterized by integer topological invariants. Using detection of the Chern number for the two-dimensional anomalous quantum Hall states and the Chern-Simons term for the three-dimensional chiral topological insulators as examples, we show that the proposed detection method is practical, and robust to typical experimental imperfections such as limited imaging resolution, inhomogeneous trapping potential, and disorder in the system.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.90.041601

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Cold-atom experiments in optical lattices offer a versatile platform to realize various topological quantum phases. A key challenge in those experiments is to unambiguously probe the topological order. We propose a method to directly measure the characteristic topological invariants (order) based on the time-of-flight imaging of cold atoms. The method is generally applicable to detection of topological band insulators in one, two, or three dimensions characterized by integer topological invariants. Using detection of the Chern number for the two-dimensional anomalous quantum Hall states and the Chern-Simons term for the three-dimensional chiral topological insulators as examples, we show that the proposed detection method is practical, and robust to typical experimental imperfections such as limited imaging resolution, inhomogeneous trapping potential, and disorder in the system.
Detecting topological order in cold-atom experiments is an ongoing challenge, the resolution of which offers novel perspectives on topological matter. In material systems, unambiguous signatures of topological order exist for topological insulators and quantum Hall devices. In quantum Hall systems, the quantized conductivity and the associated robust propagating edge modes--guaranteed by the existence of nontrivial topological invariants--have been observed through transport and spectroscopy measurements. Here, we show that optical-lattice-based experiments can be tailored to directly visualize the propagation of topological edge modes. Our method is rooted in the unique capability for initially shaping the atomic gas and imaging its time evolution after suddenly removing the shaping potentials. Our scheme, applicable to an assortment of atomic topological phases, provides a method for imaging the dynamics of topological edge modes, directly revealing their angular velocity and spin structure.
Detecting topological order in cold-atom experiments is an ongoing challenge, the resolution of which offers novel perspectives on topological matter. In material systems, unambiguous signatures of topological order exist for topological insulators and quantum Hall devices. In quantum Hall systems, the quantized conductivity and the associated robust propagating edge modes - guaranteed by the existence of non-trivial topological invariants - have been observed through transport and spectroscopy measurements. Here, we show that optical-lattice-based experiments can be tailored to directly visualize the propagation of topological edge modes. Our method is rooted in the unique capability for initially shaping the atomic gas, and imaging its time-evolution after suddenly removing the shaping potentials. Our scheme, applicable to an assortment of atomic topological phases, provides a method for imaging the dynamics of topological edge modes, directly revealing their angular velocity and spin structure.
We present a novel technique for detecting topological invariants ‐ Chern numbers ‐ from time-of-flight images of ultra-cold atoms. We show that the Chern numbers of integer quantum Hall states of lattice fermions leave their fingerprints as oscillations in the atoms’ momentum distribution. The number of oscillations within the lowest Brillouin zone is simply equal to the Chern number. The ubiquitous signature is strikingly enhanced for anisotropic hopping, where the momentum distribution assumes a sinusoidal form with period determined by the Chern number. Thus, an everyday observable in cold atom experiments can serve as a useful tool to characterize and visualize quantum states with non-trivial topology. Topological insulators (TI) and superfluids are many-body quantum systems with energy gaps in the bulk but topologically protected, gapless excitations on the boundary [1, 2]. Each class of topological phases is characterized by a topological invariant which can be either an integer or a binary quantity. For example, the integer quantum Hall insulators [3] are distinguished from other two-dimensional insulators with the same symmetry by the Chern number, an integer that capture the global properties of all occupied bands [4]. The Chern number coincides with the number of chiral edge modes, and the Hall conductance in units of the conductance quantum. A central problem in exploring new forms of topological matter is how to extract the topological invariants from experiments, and unambiguously determine the topological phase. Experiments with ultracold atoms has brought us opportunities to creating topological phases of matter in parameter regimes unreachable in solids. In addition to band-structure engineering using optical lattices and tuning the atom-atom interaction by Feshbach resonance, artificial magnetic fields for neutral atoms have been produced by either rotation [5] or atom-laser coupling [6, 7], making way to realizing quantum Hall states of cold atoms [8]. Moreover, non-Abelian synthetic gauge fields [7, 9] and spin-orbit coupling [10] have been demonstrated. These developments motivated theories on properties of ultracold topological matter, e.g., the fractional quantum Hall effect of interacting bosons [5, 11, 12], the quantum spin Hall effect of fermions [9], and the quantum anomalous Hall states ofp-orbital fermions [13]. While cold atom systems offer new detection techniques and great tunability, it is challenging to measure the topological invariants directly. Measurements of local density of states (of the edge states) or mass transport are marred with complexity in contrast to solid state systems. Thus, creative methods have to be invented. For example, Ref. [8] proposed to extract the quantized Hall conductance from the derivatives
We propose an experimental technique for classifying the topology of band structures realized in optical lattices, based on a generalization of topological charge pumping in quantum Hall systems to cold atoms in optical lattices. Time-of-flight measurement along one spatial direction combined with in situ detection along the transverse direction provides a direct measure of the system's Chern number, as we illustrate by calculations for the Hofstadter lattice. Based on an analogy with Wannier function techniques of topological band theory, the method is very general and also allows the measurement of other topological invariants, such as the Z(2) topological invariant of time-reversal symmetric insulators.
We propose a feasible experimental scheme to realize a three-dimensional chiral topological insulator with cold fermionic atoms in an optical lattice, which is characterized by an integer topological invariant distinct from the conventional Z(2) topological insulators and has a remarkable macroscopic zero-energy flat band. To probe its property, we show that its characteristic surface states--the Dirac cones--can be probed through time-of-flight imaging or Bragg spectroscopy and the flat band can be detected via measurement of the atomic density profile in a weak global trap. The realization of this novel topological phase with a flat band in an optical lattice will provide a unique experimental platform to study the interplay between interaction and topology and open new avenues for application of topological states.
We present a technique for detecting topological invariants---Chern numbers---from time-of-flight images of ultracold atoms. We show that the Chern numbers of integer quantum Hall states of lattice fermions leave their fingerprints in the atoms' momentum distribution. We analytically demonstrate that the number of local maxima in the momentum distribution is equal to the Chern number in two limiting cases, for large hopping anisotropy and in the continuum limit. In addition, our numerical simulations beyond these two limits show that these local maxima persist for a range of parameters. Thus, an everyday observable in cold atom experiments can serve as a useful tool to characterize and visualize quantum states with nontrivial topology.