Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Log inSign up
Challenges
Datasets
Workspaces
Papers
Discussions
Leaderboard
Blog
Job Board
Q3AS

© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

TermsPrivacyLegal Notice

Physical review. B, Condensed matter

Stability of skyrmions in thin films of superfluid A3

GARETH P. WILLIAMS

Published Sep 1, 1993• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Topological considerations show that thin films of $^{3}\mathit{A}$ might support skyrmions. These are topological excitations in the spin part of the order parameter. By deriving an approximation to the solitonic free energy that is exact for both small and large sizes we show that the skyrmions are unstable against collapse.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.48.7704

Related papers

Stabilizing the false vacuum: Mott skyrmions

Márton Kanász-Nagy, Balázs Dóra, Eugene Demler +1 more

Topological excitations keep fascinating physicists since many decades. While individual vortices and solitons emerge and have been observed in many areas of physics, their most intriguing higher dimensional topological relatives, skyrmions (smooth, topologically stable textures) and magnetic monopoles emerging almost necessarily in any grand unified theory and responsible for charge quantization remained mostly elusive. Here we propose that loading a three-component nematic superfluid such as (23)Na into a deep optical lattice and thereby creating an insulating core, one can create topologically stable skyrmion textures. The skyrmion's extreme stability and its compact geometry enable one to investigate the skyrmion's structure, and the interplay of topology and excitations in detail. In particular, the superfluid's excitation spectrum as well as the quantum numbers are demonstrated to change dramatically due to the skyrmion, and reflect the presence of a trapped monopole, as imposed by the skyrmion's topology.

arXiv:1403.4242•Scientific Reports•Jan 13, 2015•2 citations

Skyrmions in a ferromagnetic Bose-Einstein condensate

Usama Al Khawaja, Henk T. C. Stoof

The recently realized multicomponent Bose-Einstein condensates provide opportunities to explore the rich physics brought about by the spin degrees of freedom. For instance, we can study spin waves and phase separation, macroscopic quantum tunneling, Rabi oscillations, the coupling between spin gradients and superfluid flow, squeezed spin states, vortices and other topological excitations. Theoretically, there have been already some studies of the ground-state properties of these systems and their line-like vortex excitations. In analogy with nuclear physics or the quantum Hall effect, we explore here the possibility of observing point-like topological excitations or skyrmions. These are nontrivial spin textures that in principle can exist in a spinor Bose-Einstein condensate. In particular, we investigate the stability of skyrmions in a fictitious spin-1/2 condensate of Rb87 atoms. We find that skyrmions can exist in this case only as a metastable state, but with a lifetime of the order of, or even longer than, the typical lifetime of the condensate itself. In addition to determining the size and the lifetime of the skyrmion, we also present its spin texture and finally briefly consider its dynamical properties.

arXiv:cond-mat/0011471•Nov 28, 2000•0 citations

Duality, quantum skyrmions, and the stability of a SO(3) two-dimensional quantum spin glass

C. M. S. da Conceição, Eduardo C. Marino

Quantum topological excitations (skyrmions) are analyzed from the point of view of their duality to spin excitations in the different phases of a disordered two-dimensional, short-range interacting, SO(3) quantum magnetic system of Heisenberg type. The phase diagram displays all the phases, which are allowed by the duality relation. We study the large-distance behavior of the two-point correlation function of quantum skyrmions in each of these phases and, out of this, extract information about the energy spectrum and nontriviality of these excitations. The skyrmion correlators present a power-law decay in the spin-glass (SG) phase, indicating that these quantum topological excitations are gapless but nontrivial in this phase. The SG phase is dual to the AF phase, in the sense that topological and spin excitations are, respectively, gapless in each of them. The Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless mechanism guarantees the survival of the SG phase at $T\ensuremath{\ne}0$, whereas the AF phase is washed out to $T=0$ by the quantum fluctuations. Our results suggest a more symmetric way of characterizing a SG phase: one for which both the order and disorder parameters vanish, namely, $⟨\ensuremath{\sigma}⟩=0$ and $⟨\ensuremath{\mu}⟩=0$, where $\ensuremath{\sigma}$ is the spin and $\ensuremath{\mu}$ is the topological excitation operators.

arXiv:0907.4360•Physical Review B•Aug 27, 2009•3 citations

Topological Excitations in Spinor Bose-Einstein Condensates

Shunji Tuchiya, Susumu Kurihara

We investigate the properties of skyrmion in the ferromagnetic state of spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates by means of the mean-field theory and show that the size of skyrmion is fixed to the order of the healing length. It is shown that the interaction between two skyrmions with oppositely rotating spin textures is attractive when their separation is large, following a unique power-law behavior with a power of -7/2.

arXiv:cond-mat/0101109•Journal of the Physical Society of Japan•May 15, 2001•19 citations

Stable Skyrmions in Spinor Condensates

Igor F. Herbut, Masaki Oshikawa

Globally symmetric spinor condensates in free space are argued not to support stable topological defects in either two or three dimensions. In the latter case, however, we show that a topological Skyrmion can be stabilized by forcing it to adopt certain density profiles. A sufficient condition for the existence of Skyrmion solutions in three dimensions is formulated and illustrated in simple examples. Our results pertain to Bose-Einstein condensation in 87Rb.

arXiv:cond-mat/0604557•Physical Review Letters•Aug 23, 2006•31 citations

HALF-SKYRMION IN SPINOR BOSE–EINSTEIN CONDENSATES

Yong-Kai Liu, Cong Zhang, Shi-Jie Yang

In this paper, we present exact solutions to the F = 1 spinor Bose–Einstein condensates with only spin-independent energy by adopting a method of separating the variables, which exhibit nontrivial topology. These solutions can form solitonic fractional vortex and solitonic half-skyrmion with a Q = 1/2 topological charge in the two-dimensional system. We further address a three-dimensional prototype solution.

Modern Physics Letters B•Sep 11, 2013•2 citations
Topological considerations show that thin films of 3A^{3}\mathit{A}3A might support skyrmions. These are topological excitations in the spin part of the order parameter. By deriving an approximation to the solitonic free energy that is exact for both small and large sizes we show that the skyrmions are unstable against collapse.
Topological excitations keep fascinating physicists since many decades. While individual vortices and solitons emerge and have been observed in many areas of physics, their most intriguing higher dimensional topological relatives, skyrmions (smooth, topologically stable textures) and magnetic monopoles emerging almost necessarily in any grand unified theory and responsible for charge quantization remained mostly elusive. Here we propose that loading a three-component nematic superfluid such as (23)Na into a deep optical lattice and thereby creating an insulating core, one can create topologically stable skyrmion textures. The skyrmion's extreme stability and its compact geometry enable one to investigate the skyrmion's structure, and the interplay of topology and excitations in detail. In particular, the superfluid's excitation spectrum as well as the quantum numbers are demonstrated to change dramatically due to the skyrmion, and reflect the presence of a trapped monopole, as imposed by the skyrmion's topology.
The recently realized multicomponent Bose-Einstein condensates provide opportunities to explore the rich physics brought about by the spin degrees of freedom. For instance, we can study spin waves and phase separation, macroscopic quantum tunneling, Rabi oscillations, the coupling between spin gradients and superfluid flow, squeezed spin states, vortices and other topological excitations. Theoretically, there have been already some studies of the ground-state properties of these systems and their line-like vortex excitations. In analogy with nuclear physics or the quantum Hall effect, we explore here the possibility of observing point-like topological excitations or skyrmions. These are nontrivial spin textures that in principle can exist in a spinor Bose-Einstein condensate. In particular, we investigate the stability of skyrmions in a fictitious spin-1/2 condensate of Rb87 atoms. We find that skyrmions can exist in this case only as a metastable state, but with a lifetime of the order of, or even longer than, the typical lifetime of the condensate itself. In addition to determining the size and the lifetime of the skyrmion, we also present its spin texture and finally briefly consider its dynamical properties.
Quantum topological excitations (skyrmions) are analyzed from the point of view of their duality to spin excitations in the different phases of a disordered two-dimensional, short-range interacting, SO(3) quantum magnetic system of Heisenberg type. The phase diagram displays all the phases, which are allowed by the duality relation. We study the large-distance behavior of the two-point correlation function of quantum skyrmions in each of these phases and, out of this, extract information about the energy spectrum and nontriviality of these excitations. The skyrmion correlators present a power-law decay in the spin-glass (SG) phase, indicating that these quantum topological excitations are gapless but nontrivial in this phase. The SG phase is dual to the AF phase, in the sense that topological and spin excitations are, respectively, gapless in each of them. The Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless mechanism guarantees the survival of the SG phase at $T\ensuremath{\ne}0$, whereas the AF phase is washed out to T=0T=0T=0 by the quantum fluctuations. Our results suggest a more symmetric way of characterizing a SG phase: one for which both the order and disorder parameters vanish, namely, $⟨\ensuremath{\sigma}⟩=0$ and $⟨\ensuremath{\mu}⟩=0$, where $\ensuremath{\sigma}$ is the spin and $\ensuremath{\mu}$ is the topological excitation operators.