We study a physically motivated model for a trapped dilute gas of Bosons with repulsive pairwise atomic interactions at zero temperature. Our goal is to describe aspects of the excited many-body quantum states of this system by accounting for the scattering of atoms in pairs from the macroscopic state. We start with an approximate many-body Hamiltonian, H a p p \mathcal {H}_{\mathrm {app}} , in the Bosonic Fock space. This H a p p \mathcal {H}_{\mathrm {app}} conserves the total number of atoms. Inspired by Wu [J. Math. Phys. 2 (1961), 105–123], we apply a non-unitary transformation to H a p p \mathcal {H}_{\mathrm {app}} . Key in this procedure is the pair-excitation kernel, which obeys a nonlinear integro-partial differential equation. In the stationary case, we develop an existence theory for solutions to this equation by a variational principle. We connect this theory to a system of partial differential equations for one-particle excitation (“quasiparticle”-) wave functions derived by Fetter [Ann. Phys. 70 (1972), 67–101], and prove existence of solutions for this system. These wave functions solve an eigenvalue problem for a J J -self-adjoint operator. From the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian, we derive a one-particle nonlocal equation for low-lying excitations, describe its solutions, and recover Fetter’s energy spectrum. We also analytically provide an explicit construction of the excited eigenstates of the reduced Hamiltonian in the N N -particle sector of Fock space.
Bose-Einstein condensation is described in terms of the condensate wave function and the pair-excitation function, the latter being responsible for the existence of phonons. This minimal description in terms of these two functions is generalized to the case with an external potential. For a dilute gas with short-range pairwise repulsive interaction and at very low temperatures when the Bose-Einstein condensation is nearly complete, a partial differential equation is obtained for the condensate wave function and an integro-differential equation for the pair excitation. Experimentally, the external potential is used to trap the atoms, i.e., to keep them together. Since the trap is of macroscopic dimensions, the resulting external potential is often slowly varying. In these cases and when the condensate is in the lowest state, the partial differential equation for the condensate wave function and the integro-differential equation for the pair excitation are solved approximately for the case of a time-independent trap.
We study stationary quantum fluctuations around a mean field limit in trapped, dilute atomic gases of repulsively interacting bosons at zero temperature. Our goal is to describe quantum-mechanically the lowest macroscopic many-body bound state consistent with a microscopic Hamiltonian that accounts for inhomogeneous particle scattering processes. In the mean field limit, the wave function of the condensate (macroscopic quantum state) satisfies a defocusing cubic nonlinear Schrödinger-type equation, the Gross–Pitaevskii equation. We include consequences of pair excitation, i.e., the scattering of particles in pairs from the condensate to other states, proposed in [T. T. Wu, J. Math. Phys., 2 (1961), pp. 105–123]. Our derivations rely on an uncontrolled yet physically motivated assumption for the many-body wave function. By relaxing mathematical rigor, from a particle Hamiltonian with a spatially varying interaction strength we derive via heuristics an integro–partial differential equation for the pair collision kernel, K, under a stationary condensate wave function,
Φ. For a scattering length with periodic microstructure of subscale
ϵ, we formally describe via classical homogenization the lowest many-body bound state in terms of
Φ and K up to second order in
ϵ. If the external potential is slowly varying, we solve the homogenized equations via boundary layer theory. As an application, we describe the partial depletion of the condensate.
We provide the analysis of a physically inspired model for a trapped dilute Bose gas with repulsive pairwise atomic interactions at zero temperature. Our goal is to describe aspects of the excited many-body quantum states by accounting for the scattering of atoms in pairs from the macroscopic state (condensate). We formally construct a many-body Hamiltonian,
Happ, that is quadratic in the Boson field operators for noncondensate atoms. This
Happ conserves the total number of atoms. Inspired by Wu (J. Math. Phys., 2:105-123, 1961), we apply a non-unitary transformation to
Happ. Key in this non-Hermitian view is the pair-excitation kernel, which in operator form obeys a Riccati equation. In the stationary case, we develop an existence theory for solutions to this operator equation by a variational approach. We connect this theory to the one-particle excitation wave functions heuristically derived by Fetter (Ann. Phys., 70:67-101, 1972). These functions solve an eigenvalue problem for a
J-self-adjoint operator. From the non-Hermitian Hamiltonian, we derive a one-particle nonlocal equation for low-lying excitations, describe its solutions, and recover Fetter's excitation spectrum. Our approach leads to a description of the excited eigenstates of the reduced Hamiltonian in the
N-particle sector of Fock space.
For a trapped, dilute atomic gas of short-range, repulsive interactions at extremely low temperatures, when Bose–Einstein condensation is nearly complete, some special forms of the time-dependent condensate wave function and the pair-excitation function, the latter being responsible for phonon creation, are investigated. Specifically, (i) a class of external potentials Ve(r,t) that allow for localized, shape-preserving solutions to the nonlinear Schrödinger equation for the condensate wave function, each recognized as a solitary wave moving along an arbitrary trajectory, is derived and analyzed in any number of space dimensions; and (ii) for any such external potential and condensate wave function, the nonlinear integro-differential equation for the pair-excitation function is shown to admit solutions of the same nature. Approximate analytical results are presented for a sufficiently slowly varying trapping potential. Numerical results are obtained for the condensate wave function when Ve is a time-independent, spherically symmetric harmonic potential.