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Condensed Matter Physics with Cold Polar Molecules

Guido Pupillo, Andrea Micheli, Hans Peter Büchler, P. Zoller

Published May 13, 2008• 14 citations
Publisher

Abstract

In this review chapter we focus on the many-body dynamics of cold polar molecules in the strongly interacting regime. In particular, we discuss a toolbox for engineering many-body Hamiltonians based on the manipulation of the electric dipole moments of the molecules, and thus of molecular interactions, using external static and microwave fields. This forms the basis for the realization of novel quantum phases in these systems.

DOI
10.1201/9781420059045-21

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In this review chapter we focus on the many-body dynamics of cold polar molecules in the strongly interacting regime. In particular, we discuss a toolbox for engineering many-body Hamiltonians based on the manipulation of the electric dipole moments of the molecules, and thus of molecular interactions, using external static and microwave fields. This forms the basis for the realization of novel quantum phases in these systems.
We design dipolar quantum many-body Hamiltonians that will facilitate the realization of exotic quantum phases under current experimental conditions achieved for polar molecules. The main idea is to modulate both single-body potential barriers and two-body dipolar interactions on a spatial scale of tens of nanometers to strongly enhance energy scales and, therefore, relax temperature requirements for observing new quantum phases of engineered many-body systems. We consider and compare two approaches. In the first, nanoscale barriers are generated with standing-wave optical light fields exploiting optical nonlinearities. In the second, static electric-field gradients in combination with microwave dressing are used to write nanostructured spatial patterns on the induced electric dipole moments, and thus dipolar interactions. We study the formation of interlayer and interface bound states of molecules in these configurations, and provide detailed estimates for binding energies and expected losses for present experimental setups.
We discuss techniques to engineer effective long-range interactions between polar molecules using external static electric and microwave fields. We consider a setup where molecules are trapped in a two-dimensional pancake geometry by a far-off-resonance optical trap, which ensures the stability of the dipolar collisions. We detail how to modify the shape and the strength of the long-range part of interaction potentials, which can be utilized to realize interesting quantum phases in the context of cold molecular gases.
We discuss techniques to tune and shape the long-range part of the interaction potentials in quantum gases of bosonic polar molecules by dressing rotational excitations with static and microwave fields. This provides a novel tool towards engineering strongly correlated quantum phases in combination with low-dimensional trapping geometries. As an illustration, we discuss the 2D superfluid-crystal quantum phase transition for polar molecules interacting via an electric-field-induced dipole-dipole potential.
Ultracold polar molecules present a rich platform for experimental quantum science leveraging their unique properties. Of particular relevance is the intrinsic electric dipole moment of the molecule, which results in strong coupling to microwave fields and can be used to engineer long-range, anisotropic, and tunable dipole-dipole interactions. Such interactions can generate entanglement between molecules and enable the study of novel quantum many-body phenomena in parameter regimes inaccessible in other systems. Modern experiments in optical tweezers and optical lattices have demonstrated controlled interactions between molecules in coherent quantum states, and recently bulk gases of molecules have been cooled to quantum degeneracy. Motivated by these landmark advances, we present this article to explain many of the key concepts relevant to current research in the field.
Abstract This paper reviews recent advances in the study of strongly interacting systems of dipolar molecules. Heteronuclear molecules feature large and tunable electric dipole moments, which give rise to long-range and anisotropic dipole–dipole interactions. Ultracold samples of dipolar molecules with long-range interactions offer a unique platform for quantum simulations and the study of correlated many-body physics. We provide an introduction to the physics of dipolar quantum gases, both electric and magnetic, and summarize the multipronged efforts to bring dipolar molecules into the quantum regime. We discuss in detail the recent experimental progress in realizing and studying strongly interacting systems of polar molecules trapped in optical lattices, with particular emphasis on the study of interacting spin systems and non-equilibrium quantum magnetism. Finally, we conclude with a brief discussion of the future prospects for studies of strongly interacting dipolar molecules.