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arXiv:2105.13030 · Europhysics Letters (EPL)

Few-body perspective on fermionic pairing in one spatial dimension

Tomasz Sowiński

Published May 1, 2021• 4 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

Abstract In this perspective we discuss recent theoretical and experimental concepts giving a route to a better understanding of conventional and unconventional pairing mechanisms between opposite-spin fermions arising in one-dimensional mesoscopic systems. With special attention, we focus on the problem of experimental detectability of correlations between particles. We argue that state-of-the-art experiments with few ultracold fermions may finally break an impasse and give pioneering and unquestionable verification of the existence of correlated pairs with non-zero center-of-mass momentum.

DOI
10.1209/0295-5075/ac0f0e

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•Aug 31, 2011•0 citations
Abstract In this perspective we discuss recent theoretical and experimental concepts giving a route to a better understanding of conventional and unconventional pairing mechanisms between opposite-spin fermions arising in one-dimensional mesoscopic systems. With special attention, we focus on the problem of experimental detectability of correlations between particles. We argue that state-of-the-art experiments with few ultracold fermions may finally break an impasse and give pioneering and unquestionable verification of the existence of correlated pairs with non-zero center-of-mass momentum.
We study the ground-state properties of a two-component fermionic mixture effectively confined in a one-dimensional harmonic trap. We consider scenarios when numbers of particles in components are the same but particles have different masses. We examine whether it is possible to detect signatures of an unconventional pairing between opposite-spin fermions in the presence of attractive interactions. For this purpose, we perform the exact diagonalization of the many-body Hamiltonian and study the two-particle reduced density matrix. In agreement with expectations, we confirm that the many-body ground state is dominated by conventional pairs with a negligible total momentum for a small mass imbalance. Furthermore, we show that for sufficiently large mass ratios the domination of fundamentally different pairs is established and the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov phase is supported. Finally, we argue that the two mechanisms can coexist in the regime of moderate mass ratios. Due to the current experimental progress in obtaining ultracold fermionic systems in a few-body regime, our predictions may have some importance for the upcoming experiments.
Recent theoretical and experimental progress on studying one-dimensional systems of bosonic, fermionic, and Bose-Fermi mixtures of a few ultracold atoms confined in traps is reviewed in the broad context of mesoscopic quantum physics. We pay special attention to limiting cases of very strong or very weak interactions and transitions between them. For bosonic mixtures, we describe the developments in systems of three and four atoms as well as different extensions to larger numbers of particles. We also briefly review progress in the case of spinor Bose gases of a few atoms. For fermionic mixtures, we discuss a special role of spin and present a detailed discussion of the two- and three-atom cases. We discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different computation methods applied to systems with intermediate interactions. In the case of very strong repulsion, close to the infinite limit, we discuss approaches based on effective spin chain descriptions. We also report on recent studies on higher-spin mixtures and inter-component attractive forces. For both statistics, we pay particular attention to impurity problems and mass imbalance cases. Finally, we describe the recent advances on trapped Bose-Fermi mixtures, which allow for a theoretical combination of previous concepts, well illustrating the importance of quantum statistics and inter-particle interactions. Lastly, we report on fundamental questions related to the subject which we believe will inspire further theoretical developments and experimental verification.
Attractively interacting two-component mixtures of fermionic particles confined in a one-dimensional harmonic trap are investigated. Properties of balanced and imbalanced systems are systematically explored with the exact diagonalization approach, focusing on the finite-temperature effects. Using single- and two-particle density distributions, specific non-classical pairing correlations are analyzed in terms of the noise correlations-quantity directly accessible in state-of-the-art experiments with ultra-cold atoms. It is shown that along with increasing temperature, any imbalanced system hosting Fulde-Ferrel-Larkin-Ovchinnikov pairs crossovers to a standard Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer one characterized by zero net momentum of resulting pairs. By performing calculations for systems with different imbalances, the approximate boundary between the two phases on a phase diagram is determined.
Pairing lies at the heart of superfluidity in fermionic systems. Motivated by recent experiments in mesoscopic Fermi gases, we study up to six fermionic atoms with equal masses and equal populations in two different spin states, confined in a quasi-two-dimensional harmonic trap. We couple a stochastic variational approach with the use of an explicitly correlated Gaussian basis set, which enables us to obtain highly accurate energies and structural properties. Utilising two-dimensional two-body scattering theory with a finite-range Gaussian interaction potential, we tune the effective range to model realistic quasi-two-dimensional scattering. We calculate the excitation spectrum, pair correlation function, and number of pairs as a function of increasing attractive interaction strength. For up to six fermions in the ground state, we find that opposite spin and momentum pairing is maximised well below the Fermi surface in momentum space. By contrast, corresponding experiments on twelve fermions have found that pairing is maximal at the Fermi surface and strongly suppressed beneath [M. Holten et al., Nature 606, 287-291 (2022)]. This suggests that the Fermi sea — which acts to suppress pairing at low momenta via Pauli blocking — emerges in the transition from six to twelve particles.
Rapid progress in the field of ultracold atoms allows the study of many new and old models of quantum many-body physics. In this doctoral dissertation we theoretically explore exotic phases of ultracold quantum gases, with a special focus spin-imbalanced attractive Fermi gases in lower dimensional situations. Chapter 2 reviews the mean-field theory approach to pairing in twocomponent Fermi gases. Applications of this theory are illustrated in Chapter 3, where we discuss mostly well-known results of mean-field theory applied to imbalanced Fermi gases. Adapted from the author's prior publications, Chapters 4, 5 use the theory developed in Chapters 2, 3. In Chapter 6 we discuss the physics of Fermi gases, squeezed into one spatial dimension. In this and Chapter 7, we go beyond mean-field theory, approaching the problem through the Bethe ansatz, exact solutions to few-body problems and Fermi-Bose mappings ("fermionization"). We also show results from a joint effort with the experimental group of Randy Hulet at Rice University to experimentally realize and probe a strongly interacting one dimensional paired Fermi gas. In Chapter 8, after a brief introduction to rapidly rotating two dimensional Bose gases, we introduce a new protocol to create few atom fractional quantum Hall states. Finally, in Chapter 9 we study the effects of two-body losses on lattice Bose gases with hardcore interactions in one and two spatial dimensions.