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

Journal of Mathematical Physics

Bose–Einstein condensation in an external potential at zero temperature: Solitary-wave theory

Dionisios Margetis

Published Nov 1, 1999• 9 citations
Publisher

Abstract

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.

DOI
10.1063/1.533043

Related papers

Bose-Einstein condensation in an external potential at zero temperature: General theory

Tai Tsun Wu

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.

Physical Review A•Aug 1, 1998•20 citations

Bose-Einstein condensation in an external potential, 1

Tai Tsun Wu

The theory of Bose-Einstein condensation for a dilute gas with short-range pairwise repulsive interaction is developed when an external potential is present.At 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.

•Sep 1, 1996•0 citations

Bose-Einstein condensation in an external potential, 2

Tai Tsun Wu

The theory of the preceding Paper I is applied to the Bose-Einstein condensation in a trap for a dilute gas with short-range pairwise repulsive interaction.Since the trap is of macroscopic dimensions, the resulting external potential is often slowly varying.In these cases, the partial differential equation for the condensate wave function and the integro-differential equation for the pair excitation are solved approximately.

•Jan 1, 1996•0 citations

Solvable model for pair excitation in trapped Boson gas at zero temperature

Dionisios Margetis

In Bose-Einstein condensation, a macroscopically large number of particles occupy the same single-particle quantum state. Our goal is to study time-dependent aspects of particle excitations to states other than the single-particle macroscopic state in trapped dilute atomic gases. We adopt the view that atoms are excited in pairs so that their scattering from the single-particle state to vector positions x and y at time t is described by the pair-excitation function, K0(x,y,t). We solve a nonlocal equation for K0 under a slowly varying external potential by assuming that the wave function of the macroscopic state satisfies a time-independent nonlinear Schroedinger equation. For zero initial excitation (K0=0 at t=0) and sufficiently large t, we evaluate asymptotically K0 in terms of the one-variable Lommel function for any distance |x-y|.

arXiv:0709.2645•Journal of Physics A Mathematical and Theoretical•Aug 22, 2008•4 citations

Numerical Solution of the Nonlinear Schrdinger Equation for Bose-Einstein Condensate

Liang Jun-jun

Numerical solution of nonlinear Schrodinger equation (NLSE) can be used to describe an inhomogeneous,weakly interact Bose-Einstein condensate in a small harmonic trap potential at zero temperature. In one dimension situation, we find solutions for the NLSE for ground-state condensate wave function, and obtain the ground-state condensate energy per particle. Furthermore, with the time-dependent NLSE, we can examine the time evolution of the macroscopic wave function even when the trap potential is changed on a time scale comparable to that of the condensate dynamics, a situation that can be easily achieved in magneto-optical traps. We show that there are stable solutions for atomic species with both positive and negative s-wave scattering length in one-dimensional (1D) system for a fixed number of atoms, and the negative scattering length solutions have solitonlike properties.

Journal of Shanxi University•Jan 1, 2004•0 citations

Bose–Einstein Condensation beyond Mean Field: Many-Body Bound State of Periodic Microstructure

Dionisios Margetis

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, $\Phi$. For a scattering length with periodic microstructure of subscale $\epsilon$, we formally describe via classical homogenization the lowest many-body bound state in terms of $\Phi$ and K up to second order in $\epsilon$. 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.

Multiscale Modeling and Simulation•Jan 1, 2012•5 citations
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.
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.
In Bose-Einstein condensation, a macroscopically large number of particles occupy the same single-particle quantum state. Our goal is to study time-dependent aspects of particle excitations to states other than the single-particle macroscopic state in trapped dilute atomic gases. We adopt the view that atoms are excited in pairs so that their scattering from the single-particle state to vector positions x and y at time t is described by the pair-excitation function, K0(x,y,t). We solve a nonlocal equation for K0 under a slowly varying external potential by assuming that the wave function of the macroscopic state satisfies a time-independent nonlinear Schroedinger equation. For zero initial excitation (K0=0 at t=0) and sufficiently large t, we evaluate asymptotically K0 in terms of the one-variable Lommel function for any distance |x-y|.
Numerical solution of nonlinear Schrodinger equation (NLSE) can be used to describe an inhomogeneous,weakly interact Bose-Einstein condensate in a small harmonic trap potential at zero temperature. In one dimension situation, we find solutions for the NLSE for ground-state condensate wave function, and obtain the ground-state condensate energy per particle. Furthermore, with the time-dependent NLSE, we can examine the time evolution of the macroscopic wave function even when the trap potential is changed on a time scale comparable to that of the condensate dynamics, a situation that can be easily achieved in magneto-optical traps. We show that there are stable solutions for atomic species with both positive and negative s-wave scattering length in one-dimensional (1D) system for a fixed number of atoms, and the negative scattering length solutions have solitonlike properties.
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\PhiΦ. For a scattering length with periodic microstructure of subscale ϵ\epsilonϵ, we formally describe via classical homogenization the lowest many-body bound state in terms of Φ\PhiΦ and K up to second order in ϵ\epsilonϵ. 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.