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arXiv:2002.11333 · Physical Review Research

Orbital ordering of ultracold alkaline-earth atoms in optical lattices

Andrii Sotnikov, Nelson Darkwah Oppong, Yeimer Zambrano, Agnieszka Cichy

Published May 19, 2020• 8 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

This paper investigates how orbital ordering phenomena of solid-state materials can be realized with ultracold atoms in an artificial crystal formed by optical lattices. The authors present a model based on existing experiments and use numerical simulations to show that an orbitally ordered phase exists for a large range of experimentally accessible parameters.

DOI
10.1103/physrevresearch.2.023188

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This paper investigates how orbital ordering phenomena of solid-state materials can be realized with ultracold atoms in an artificial crystal formed by optical lattices. The authors present a model based on existing experiments and use numerical simulations to show that an orbitally ordered phase exists for a large range of experimentally accessible parameters.
We report on a dynamical mean-field theoretical analysis of emerging low-temperature phases in multicomponent gases of fermionic alkaline-earth(-like) atoms in state-dependent optical lattices. Using the example of 173^{173}173Yb atoms, we show that a two-orbital mixture with two nuclear spin components is a promising candidate for studies of not only magnetic but also staggered orbital ordering peculiar to certain solid-state materials. We calculate and study the phase diagram of the full Hamiltonian with parameters similar to existing experiments and reveal an antiferroorbital phase. This long-range-ordered phase is inherently stable, and we analyze the change of local and global observables across the corresponding transition lines, paving the way for experimental observations. Furthermore, we suggest a realistic extension of the system to include and probe a Jahn-Teller source field playing one of the key roles in real crystals.
In this dissertation we focus on many-body phenomena on a quantum level. In particular fermionic quantum gases in a temperature regime approaching absolute zero. Ultracold quantum gases have proven to be a versatile framework for Theorists and Experimentalists to probe many-body quantum mechanics. They also serve to quantum simulate solid state problems in a clean and controllable environment. The use of optical lattices include the advantage of tuning the required lattice structure nearly at will and lack the experimental shortcomings compared to the solid state, like the presence of lattice dislocations. The relevant lattice parameters can be easily tuned without changing the setup. In recent years many goals within theory and experiments of ultracold quantum gases in optical lattices were achieved. This emphasizes the significance of ongoing research with ultracold quantum gases on optical lattices. We present two aspects of modern theory of ultracold quantum gases in optical lattices. On the one hand, we implement orbital physics in a setup of optical lattices and on the other, we find elusive Majorana fermions in a setup with ultracold fermionic gases. Both aspects are well-known in solid state systems, but did not make the step towards ultracold quantum gases so far. We propose and investigate setups to quantum simulate these challenges in the framework of optical lattices. The first part of this work concerns the implementation of orbital physics in optical lattices. The orbital structure of atoms reveals novel phenomena in solid state systems. This raises the interest in creating optical lattice systems exhibiting analog behavior, as dictated by the orbitals in the solid state. We derive the microscopic Hamiltonian for a p-orbital system and investigate it in detail. For this Hamiltonian we perform a mean-field treatment and discover novel phase transitions including a possible tricritical point. In the analysis of the strong coupling regime we find an additional phase transition towards an antiferromagnet and then extend the mean-field phase diagram. Concluding the investigations is a proposal of an experimental setup to achieve orbital physics with state-of-the-art experimental tools. The second part of this work considers Majorana modes and p-wave superfluids. Majorana modes are not only present in high-energy physics, but also in condensed matter systems. Here we demonstrate a setup in order to simulate Majorana modes and p-wave superfluids in optical lattices. We derive an effective Hamiltonian and investigate it on a mean-field level as well as give the mean-field phase diagram. It contains a rich manifold of different p-wave phases. In addition, we extend our investigations to topological properties of our system and provide the topological phase diagram. We discover the special phenomena that the mean-field and topological phase transitions are decoupled in our system. The proposed system is suited to have Majorana modes at vortices and dislocations, which are injected into the system in controllable experimental manner. We conclude the considerations by giving a protocol for braiding in order to demonstrate non-Abelian statistics of Majorana modes.
We study finite-temperature properties of ultracold four-component mixtures of alkaline-earth-metal-like atoms in optical lattices that can be effectively described by the two-band spin-1/21/21/2 Hubbard model including Hund's exchange coupling term. Our main goal is to investigate the effect of exchange interactions on finite-temperature magnetic phases for a wide range of lattice fillings. We use the dynamical mean-field theory approach and its real-space generalization to obtain finite-temperature phase diagrams including transitions to magnetically ordered phases. It allows to determine optimal experimental regimes for approaching long-range ferromagnetic ordering in ultracold gases. We also calculate the entropy in the vicinity of magnetically ordered phases, which provides quantitative predictions for ongoing and future experiments aiming at approaching and studying long-range ordered states in optical lattices.
Quasicrystals are long-range ordered and yet non-periodic. This interplay results in a wealth of intriguing physical phenomena, such as self-similarity, the inheritance of topological properties from higher dimensions, and the presence of non-trivial structure on all lengthscales. However, quasicrystalline materials are notoriously hard to synthesise, as defects and impurities may greatly alter their final microscopic composition. The field of quantum simulation with ultracold atoms offers a solution to this problem, namely the use of optical lattices – standing waves of light. Optical lattices are free of impurities and therefore ideally suited to study quasicrystals, enabling unprecedented access to observables that are unattainable in condensed matter systems. This study presents the first experimental realisation of a two-dimensional quasicrystalline potential for ultracold atoms, based on an eightfold symmetric optical lattice. Features pertaining to both ordered and disordered phases are observed, from sharp diffraction peaks in the matter-wave interference pattern, to a disorder-induced localised phase emerging at a critical lattice depth V_loc ~ 1.78 E_rec. The localised phase seems to be resilient against moderate interactions, which would make this the first experimental realisation of a 2D Bose glass.
Ultracold atoms in optical lattices can be used to model condensed matter systems. They provide a clean, tuneable system which can be engineered to reach parameter regimes that are not accessible in condensed matter systems. Furthermore, they provide different techniques for probing the properties of these systems.This thesis presents an experimental and theoretical study of ultracold atoms in optical lattices for quantum simulation of two-dimensional systems.The first part of this thesis describes an experiment with a Bose-Einstein condensate of 87Rb loaded into a two-dimensional optical lattice. The beams that generate the optical lattice are controlled by acousto-optic deflection to provide a flexible optical lattice potential. The use of a dynamic ‘accordion’ lattice with ultracold atoms, where the spacing of the lattice is increased in both directions from 2.2 to 5.5 μm, is described. This technique allows an experiment such as quantum simulations to be performed with a lattice spacing smaller than the resolution limit of the imaging system, while allowing imaging of the atoms at individual lattice sites by subsequent expansion of the optical lattice. The optical lattice can also be rotated, generating an artificial magnetic field. Previous experiments with the rotating optical lattice are summarised, and steps to reaching the strongly correlated regime are discussed.The second part of this thesis details numerical techniques that can be used to describe strongly correlated two-dimensional systems. These systems are challenging to simulate numerically, as the exponential growth in the size of the Hilbert space with the number of particles means that they can only be solved exactly for very small systems. Recently proposed correlator product states [Phys. Rev. B 80, 245116 (2009)] provide a numerically efficient description which can be used to simulate large two-dimensional systems. In this thesis we apply this method to the two-dimensional quantum Ising model, and the Bose-Hubbard model subject to an artificial magnetic field in the regime where fractional quantum Hall states are predicted to occur.
The orbital degree of freedom plays a fundamental role in understanding the unconventional properties in solid state materials. Experimental progress in quantum atomic gases has demonstrated that high orbitals in optical lattices can be used to construct quantum emulators of exotic models beyond natural crystals, where novel many-body states such as complex Bose-Einstein condensates and topological semimetals emerge. A brief introduction of orbital degrees of freedom in optical lattices is given and a summary of exotic orbital models and resulting many-body phases is provided. Experimental consequences of the novel phases are also discussed.