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arXiv:2011.01399 · Physical Review A

Controlling directed atomic motion and second-order tunneling of a spin-orbit-coupled atom in optical lattices

Xiaobing Luo, Zhao‐Yun Zeng, Yu Guo, Baiyuan Yang, Jinpeng Xiao, Lei Li, Chao Kong, Aixi Chen

Published Apr 9, 2021• 15 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We theoretically explore the tunneling dynamics for the tight-binding model of a single spin-orbit-coupled atom trapped in an optical lattice subjected to lattice shaking and to time-periodic Zeeman field. By means of analytical and numerical methods, we demonstrate that the spin-orbit (SO) coupling adds some results to the tunneling dynamics in both multiphoton resonance and far-off-resonance parameter regimes. When the driving frequency is resonant with the static Zeeman field (multiphoton resonances), we obtain an unexpected dynamical localization (DL) phenomenon where the single SO-coupled atom is restricted to making perfect two-site Rabi oscillation accompanied by spin flipping. By using the unconventional DL phenomenon, we are able to generate a ratchetlike effect which enables directed atomic motion towards different directions and accompanies periodic spin flipping under the action of SO coupling. For the far-off-resonance case, we show that by suppressing the usual intersite tunneling alone, it is possible to realize a type of spin-conserving second-order tunneling between next-nearest-neighboring sites, which is not accessible in the conventional lattice system without SO coupling. We also show that simultaneous controls of the usual intersite tunneling and the SO-coupling-related second-order tunneling are necessary for quasienergies flatness (collapse) and completely frozen dynamics to exist. These results may be relevant to potential applications such as spin-based quantum information processing and design of spintronics devices.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.103.043315

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We theoretically explore the tunneling dynamics for the tight-binding model of a single spin-orbit-coupled atom trapped in an optical lattice subjected to lattice shaking and to time-periodic Zeeman field. By means of analytical and numerical methods, we demonstrate that the spin-orbit (SO) coupling adds some results to the tunneling dynamics in both multiphoton resonance and far-off-resonance parameter regimes. When the driving frequency is resonant with the static Zeeman field (multiphoton resonances), we obtain an unexpected dynamical localization (DL) phenomenon where the single SO-coupled atom is restricted to making perfect two-site Rabi oscillation accompanied by spin flipping. By using the unconventional DL phenomenon, we are able to generate a ratchetlike effect which enables directed atomic motion towards different directions and accompanies periodic spin flipping under the action of SO coupling. For the far-off-resonance case, we show that by suppressing the usual intersite tunneling alone, it is possible to realize a type of spin-conserving second-order tunneling between next-nearest-neighboring sites, which is not accessible in the conventional lattice system without SO coupling. We also show that simultaneous controls of the usual intersite tunneling and the SO-coupling-related second-order tunneling are necessary for quasienergies flatness (collapse) and completely frozen dynamics to exist. These results may be relevant to potential applications such as spin-based quantum information processing and design of spintronics devices.
Abstract In this work, we have studied the quantum tunneling of a single spin–orbit-coupled atom held in a periodically modulated optical lattice with an impurity. As a result we find that the dynamical localization takes place globally at the collapse points of quasienergy spectrum, even when the impurity potential is far off-resonant with the driving field. Meanwhile, two types of local second-order tunneling processes appear beyond expectation between the two nearest-neighbor sites of the impurity, with the spin unchanged and with the impurity site population negligible. Though tunneling behaviors of the two types seem to be the same, they are believed to involve two distinct mechanisms: one is related to spin-independent process, while the other is to spin-dependent tunneling process. The two types of second-order processes can be identified by means of resonant tunneling with or without spin flipping by tuning the impurity potential to be in resonance with the driving field. In the Floquet picture, the system with the localized impurity develops a fine structure of avoided crossings of quasienergies near the collapse point, which is crucial to understand the so-called second-order tunneling dynamics. These results are confirmed analytically on the basis of effective three-site model and multiple-time-scale asymptotic perturbative method, and may be exploited for engineering the spin-dependent quantum transport in realistic experiments.
Abstract We theoretically study the tunneling dynamics of two interacting spin–orbit-coupled (SOC) atoms trapped in a periodically perturbed double-well potential. We find that the phenomenon of coherent destruction of tunneling (CDT) can exist only for certain values of SOC, and two different mechanisms for the appearance of CDT are identified in this system. One is the conventional CDT resulting from quasi-energy degeneracy, while the other CDT originates from the dark Floquet state with zero quasi-energy for all values of the driving parameters. We discover that under double modulation combining the double-well potential shaking and a time-periodic Zeeman field, it is possible to realize spin-flipping single-atom Rabi tunneling and the CDT induced by the dark Floquet state at any value of SOC strength, which is not accessible with a single-drive field. Furthermore, we show that the detuning of Zeeman field with respect to the multiphoton energy is particularly significant in the case of the correlated two-particle tunneling mediated by SOC. We expect that these results will stimulate further exploration of the many-body dynamics in the interacting systems and expand the possibilities for manipulating the spin dynamics.
We study coherent control of spin-dependent dynamical localization (DL) and directed transport (DT) of a spin-orbit-coupled single atom held in a driven optical bipartite lattice. Under the high-frequency limit and nearest-neighbor tight-binding approximation, we find a new decoupling mechanism between states with the same (different) spins, which leads to two sets of analytical solutions describing DL and DT with (without) spin flipping. The analytical results are numerically confirmed, and perfect agreements are found. Extending the research to a system of spin-orbit-coupled single atoms, the spin current and quantum information transport with controllable propagation speed and distance are investigated. The results can be experimentally tested in the current setups and may be useful in quantum information processing.
Abstract We employ a method involving coherent periodic modulation of Raman laser intensity to induce resonance transitions between energy levels of a spin-orbit coupled atom in a symmetric double-well trap. By integrating photon-assisted tunneling technique with spin–orbit coupling (SOC), we achieve resonance transitions between the predefined energy levels of the atom, thereby enabling further precise control of the atom’s dynamics. We observe that such photon-like resonance can induce a transition from a localized state to atomic Rabi oscillation between two wells, or effectively reduce tunneling as manifested by a quantum beating phenomenon. Moreover, such resonance transitions have the potential to induce spin flipping in a spin-orbit coupled atom. Additionally, the SOC-mediated transition from multiphoton resonance to fundamental resonance and the SOC-induced resonance suppression are also discovered. In these cases, the analytical results of the effective coupling coefficients of the resonance transition derived from a four-level model can account for the entire dynamics, demonstrating surprisingly good agreement with the numerically exact results based on the realistic continuous model.
We address Bloch oscillations of a spin-orbit coupled atom in periodic potentials of two types: optical and Zeeman lattices. We show that in optical lattices the spin-orbit coupling allows controlling the direction of atomic motion and may lead to complete suppression of the oscillations at specific values of the coupling strength. In Zeeman lattices the energy bands are found to cross each other at the boundaries of the Brillouin zone, resulting in period doubling of the oscillations. In all cases, the oscillations are accompanied by rotation of the pseudospin, with a dynamics that is determined by the strength of the spin-orbit coupling. The predicted effects are discussed also in terms of a Wannier-Stark ladder, which in optical lattices consist of two mutually shifted equidistant subladders.
The dynamic localization of a two-level atom in a periodic potential under the action of spin-orbit coupling and a weak harmonically varying linear force is studied. We consider optical and Zeeman potentials that are either in phase or out of phase in two spinor components, respectively. The expectation value for the position of the atom after one oscillation period of the linear force is recovered in authentic resonances or in pseudoresonances. The frequencies of the linear force corresponding to authentic resonances are determined by the band structure of the periodic potential and are affected by the spin-orbit coupling. The width or dispersion of the wave packet in authentic resonances is usually minimal. The frequencies corresponding to pseudoresonances do not depend on the type of potential and on the strength of the spin-orbit coupling, while the evolution of excitations at the corresponding frequencies is usually accompanied by significant dispersion. Pseudoresonances are determined by the initial phase of the linear force and by the quasimomentum of the wave packet. Due to the spinor nature of the system, the motion of the atom is accompanied by periodic, but not harmonic, spin oscillations. Under the action of spin-orbit coupling the oscillations of the wave packet can be nearly completely suppressed in optical lattices. Dynamic localization in Zeeman lattices is characterized by doubling of the resonant oscillation periods due to band crossing at the boundary of the Brillouin zone. We also show that higher harmonics in the Fourier expansion of the energy band lead to effective dispersion, which can be strong enough to prevent dynamic localization of the Bloch wave packet.