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CRC Press eBooks

Coherent Matter Field Phenomena in Superfluids

Philip Warren Anderson

Published Mar 9, 2018• 22 citations
Publisher

Abstract

In any system, no matter how dreadfully off equilibrium it may be, this is the chemical potential. It is quite important that f, the mean value of the wave field, is a complex order parameter. The foundations of the subject of quantum coherence were laid long before there were any acceptable microscopic theories of superconducting electron gas in metals phenomena. The proposal O. Penrose and L. Onsager made was that one could essentially define superfluidity of a Bose system such as liquid He as a state in which the density matrix of the system factorized in a certain special way. If the energy were independent of the relative phase of the quantum field operator on the two sides the author would not have such a mean value because on the average the two phases would fluctuate completely independently. It is a different coherence, not a superposition of the original ones but a different coherent state.

DOI
10.4324/9780429494116-6

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A theory of superfluidity (S.F.) is developed from first principles using two novel concepts, (1) that of a 'superfluid Ensemble' (S.E.) i.e. a 'Restricted Ensemble' constructed from a 'Separable Phase Space' (S.P.S.) admitting independent configurations, at least one set of which are statistically equivalent. (2) The notion of 'Dynamical Equivalence' (D.E.), satisfied if and only if (i) all dynamical symmetries are rearranged (not broken) for two Lagrangian formulations of the same problem and if (ii) the expectation values of all the constants of motion are the same, even if their functional expressions are not. The dynamical variables (d.v.) of the S.P.S. are defined from the ('q' and 'c' number) fields of the most general 'Linear Coherent State Representation', more general than those of Glauber and Bogoljubov-Valatin combined. Three independent pairs of d.v. are obtained. D.E. is proven for the Ideal Bose Gas and for a non-linear, interacting zero order Bose problem (I.Z.O.P.). An exact relation is obtained from the action principle, ensuring the cancellation of 'low and high order dangerous diagrams'. From this it follows that D.E. for the exact interacting problem must be demonstrable at infinite order of perturbation, in the finite volume limit. The I.Z.O.P. is posed in the Random Phase Approximation (R.P.A.), free from 'anomalous averages' and solved for the three branches of the excitation spectrum in a pure state description; the lowest branch is gapless, whilst the upper two coincide and show a gap. The standard strategy of linearization is found to be faulty. The partition functions for both superfluid and non-superfluid ensembles are obtained for the I.Z.O.P. in the R.P.A. The coincident upper two branches (in a pure state description) split into a band in thermal equilibrium for the superfluid ensemble, in agreement with an upper band recently observed experimentally. O.D.L.R.O. is found in the second reduced density matrix, but ruled out in the first. Integral equations are obtained in thermal equilibrium - for the I.Z.O.P. in the R.P.A.; which differ, however, from those of existing approaches for the same problem. Most existing theories of S.F. are in fact shown not to predict superfluid behaviour. The present theory is applicable to arbitrary Bose or Fermi systems, whether superfluid or not. O.D.L.R.O. is found to be sufficient for SF. No a priori assumption is made as to the occurrence of Bose-Einstein condensation, its existence being here contingent on the solution of the integral equation; in any case, it is not to be associated with O.D.L.R.O. or S.F.

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We conclude our study of superfluidity in Bose liquids with a brief summary of the strengths, and of the inadequacies, of the theory. The cornerstone of our fundamental understanding of superfluidity has been the recognition of the central importance of the condensate, a single quantum state which is macroscopically occupied. For the Bose liquid one has a particle condensate, characterized by a non-vanishing expectation value of ψ (r). The existence of the condensate explains all major aspects of superfluid behavior; in particular, we now possess: A clear understanding of the static and the long wavelength dynamic properties of an equilibrium Bose liquid, including a microscopic basis for the two-fluid model. A precise microscopic theory at T = 0 for a specific model, the dilute Bose gas. Variational calculations of the excitation spectrum of liquid He II (and of the ground state properties as well), which are in good quantitative agreement with experiment. A satisfactory phenomenological treatment of the interactions between elementary excitations which give rise to various irreversible phenomena. A qualitative understanding of the role which is played by quantized vortices in both equilibrium and non-equilibrium phenomena.

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arXiv:1709.02110•Sep 7, 2017•0 citations
In any system, no matter how dreadfully off equilibrium it may be, this is the chemical potential. It is quite important that f, the mean value of the wave field, is a complex order parameter. The foundations of the subject of quantum coherence were laid long before there were any acceptable microscopic theories of superconducting electron gas in metals phenomena. The proposal O. Penrose and L. Onsager made was that one could essentially define superfluidity of a Bose system such as liquid He as a state in which the density matrix of the system factorized in a certain special way. If the energy were independent of the relative phase of the quantum field operator on the two sides the author would not have such a mean value because on the average the two phases would fluctuate completely independently. It is a different coherence, not a superposition of the original ones but a different coherent state.
A theory of superfluidity (S.F.) is developed from first principles using two novel concepts, (1) that of a 'superfluid Ensemble' (S.E.) i.e. a 'Restricted Ensemble' constructed from a 'Separable Phase Space' (S.P.S.) admitting independent configurations, at least one set of which are statistically equivalent. (2) The notion of 'Dynamical Equivalence' (D.E.), satisfied if and only if (i) all dynamical symmetries are rearranged (not broken) for two Lagrangian formulations of the same problem and if (ii) the expectation values of all the constants of motion are the same, even if their functional expressions are not. The dynamical variables (d.v.) of the S.P.S. are defined from the ('q' and 'c' number) fields of the most general 'Linear Coherent State Representation', more general than those of Glauber and Bogoljubov-Valatin combined. Three independent pairs of d.v. are obtained. D.E. is proven for the Ideal Bose Gas and for a non-linear, interacting zero order Bose problem (I.Z.O.P.). An exact relation is obtained from the action principle, ensuring the cancellation of 'low and high order dangerous diagrams'. From this it follows that D.E. for the exact interacting problem must be demonstrable at infinite order of perturbation, in the finite volume limit. The I.Z.O.P. is posed in the Random Phase Approximation (R.P.A.), free from 'anomalous averages' and solved for the three branches of the excitation spectrum in a pure state description; the lowest branch is gapless, whilst the upper two coincide and show a gap. The standard strategy of linearization is found to be faulty. The partition functions for both superfluid and non-superfluid ensembles are obtained for the I.Z.O.P. in the R.P.A. The coincident upper two branches (in a pure state description) split into a band in thermal equilibrium for the superfluid ensemble, in agreement with an upper band recently observed experimentally. O.D.L.R.O. is found in the second reduced density matrix, but ruled out in the first. Integral equations are obtained in thermal equilibrium - for the I.Z.O.P. in the R.P.A.; which differ, however, from those of existing approaches for the same problem. Most existing theories of S.F. are in fact shown not to predict superfluid behaviour. The present theory is applicable to arbitrary Bose or Fermi systems, whether superfluid or not. O.D.L.R.O. is found to be sufficient for SF. No a priori assumption is made as to the occurrence of Bose-Einstein condensation, its existence being here contingent on the solution of the integral equation; in any case, it is not to be associated with O.D.L.R.O. or S.F.
A theory of superfluidity (S.F.) is developed from first principles using two novel concepts, (1) that of a 'superfluid Ensemble' (S.E.) i.e. a 'Restricted Ensemble' constructed from a 'Separable Phase Space' (S.P.S.) admitting independent configurations, at least one set of which are statistically equivalent. (2) The notion of 'Dynamical Equivalence' (D.E.), satisfied if and only if (i) all dynamical symmetries are rearranged (not broken) for two Lagrangian formulations of the same problem and if (ii) the expectation values of all the constants of motion are the same, even if their functional expressions are not. The dynamical variables (d.v.) of the S.P.S. are defined from the ('q' and 'c' number) fields of the most general 'Linear Coherent State Representation', more general than those of Glauber and Bogoljubov-Valatin combined. Three independent pairs of d.v. are obtained. D.E. is proven for the Ideal Bose Gas and for a non-linear, interacting zero order Bose problem (I.Z.O.P.). An exact relation is obtained from the action principle, ensuring the cancellation of 'low and high order dangerous diagrams'. From this it follows that D.E. for the exact interacting problem must be demonstrable at infinite order of perturbation, in the finite volume limit. The I.Z.O.P. is posed in the Random Phase Approximation (R.P.A.), free from 'anomalous averages' and solved for the three branches of the excitation spectrum in a pure state description; the lowest branch is gapless, whilst the upper two coincide and show a gap. The standard strategy of linearization is found to be faulty. The partition functions for both superfluid and non-superfluid ensembles are obtained for the I.Z.O.P. in the R.P.A. The coincident upper two branches (in a pure state description) split into a band in thermal equilibrium for the superfluid ensemble, in agreement with an upper band recently observed experimentally. O.D.L.R.O. is found in the second reduced density matrix, but ruled out in the first. Integral equations are obtained in thermal equilibrium - for the I.Z.O.P. in the R.P.A.; which differ, however, from those of existing approaches for the same problem. Most existing theories of S.F. are in fact shown not to predict superfluid behaviour. The present theory is applicable to arbitrary Bose or Fermi systems, whether superfluid or not. O.D.L.R.O. is found to be sufficient for SF. No a priori assumption is made as to the occurrence of Bose-Einstein condensation, its existence being here contingent on the solution of the integral equation; in any case, it is not to be associated with O.D.L.R.O. or S.F.
A system composed of particles, whose quantum mechanical zero point energy is large compared to their interaction energy, does not solidify even at absolute zero temperature and remains a so-called quantum liquid. Typical examples of such systems are conduction electrons in metals and liquid helium. Many conductors undergo a phase transition at their critical temperature T c and become superconducting below it. Similarly, liquid 4 He under its vapour pressure becomes a superfluid at T c = 2.17 K ( T λ is often used instead of T c ), and liquid 3 He at T c = 0.9 mK. Although the phenomena are called superconductivity for a charged system like conduction electrons, and superfluidity for a neutral system like liquid helium, they are characterised by the same basic property that the wave nature of the particles manifests itself on a macroscopic scale, as we shall see below. Phenomena The most important factor in determining the properties of a quantum liquid is the statistics of the constituent particles. Liquid 3 He becomes a typical Fermi liquid below 0.1 K and a superfluid below a few mK, in contrast with the bosonic liquid 4 He mentioned above. The two superfluids are quite different both phenomenologically and microscopically. Table 1.1 shows systems which exhibit, or are predicted to exhibit (in brackets), superconductivity or superfluidity. In the case of fermion systems pair formation is responsible for the phenomena so that their properties differ according to the pairing type.
Superfluidity is one of the most striking manifestations of quantum mechanics at macroscopic scales, characterized by frictionless flow and the emergence of collective quantum phenomena. The theoretical foundation of superfluidity in fermionic systems was revolutionized by the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) theory, developed in 1957 to explain superconductivity in metals. This groundbreaking work provided a microscopic description of how attractive interactions between electrons near the Fermi surface can lead to the formation of Cooper pairs-correlated pairs of fermions that condense into a coherent quantum state. The BCS theory not only explained superconductivity but also laid the groundwork for understanding superfluidity in systems like liquid helium-3 and ultracold fermionic gases, becoming a cornerstone of condensed matter physics.
We conclude our study of superfluidity in Bose liquids with a brief summary of the strengths, and of the inadequacies, of the theory. The cornerstone of our fundamental understanding of superfluidity has been the recognition of the central importance of the condensate, a single quantum state which is macroscopically occupied. For the Bose liquid one has a particle condensate, characterized by a non-vanishing expectation value of ψ (r). The existence of the condensate explains all major aspects of superfluid behavior; in particular, we now possess: A clear understanding of the static and the long wavelength dynamic properties of an equilibrium Bose liquid, including a microscopic basis for the two-fluid model. A precise microscopic theory at T = 0 for a specific model, the dilute Bose gas. Variational calculations of the excitation spectrum of liquid He II (and of the ground state properties as well), which are in good quantitative agreement with experiment. A satisfactory phenomenological treatment of the interactions between elementary excitations which give rise to various irreversible phenomena. A qualitative understanding of the role which is played by quantized vortices in both equilibrium and non-equilibrium phenomena.
Bosonization of Cooper pairs and novel Bose-liquid superconductivity and superfluidity in high-TcT_cTc​ cuprates and other systems
The criteria for bosonization of Cooper pairs and novel Bose-liquid superconductivity and superfluidity in high-TcT_cTc​ cuprates and other pseudogap matters are formulated by using the uncertainty principle and the boson mean field theory. We argue that the BCS-type s- or d-wave superconductivity occurring in the fermionic limit of Cooper pairs (which exist in ordinary metals and heavily overdoped cuprates with large Fermi energies) is not characteristic of underdoped to overdoped cuprates with low Fermi energies. The superconducting order parameter in high-TcT_cTc​ cuprates and other pseudogap matters cannot be determined as the BCS-like (s- or d-wave) gap. We show that the unconventional superconductivity/superfluidity occurring in the bosonic limit of Cooper pairs exists in low Fermi energy systems where the bosonic Cooper pairs are formed at a pseudogap temperature T* above the uperconducting/superfluid transition temperature TcT_cTc​ and then such bosons condenses into a Bose superfluid at TcT_cTc​. The pair condensation of attracting bosons occurs at TcT_cTc​ and then their single particle condensation sets in at Tc∗T_c^*Tc∗​ lower than TcT_cTc​ (in three dimensions (3D)) or at T=0 (in two dimensions (2D)). The coherent single particle and pair condensates of bosons exist as two distinct superfluid phases below TcT_cTc​. By solving the mean field equations for high-TcT_cTc​ cuprates, the novel superconducting states (i.e., a vortex-like state existing below the temperature Tv=Tc2DT_v=T^{2D}_cTv​=Tc2D​ lower than T* but higher than Tc=Tc3DT_c=T^{3D}_cTc​=Tc3D​ and two superconducting phases below TcT_cTc​) and their properties characterized by the boson superfluid stiffness are determined and compared with the key experimental findings. The novel Bose-liquid superconductivity and superfluidity exists also in other exotic superconductors/superfluids, including quantum liquids, atomic Fermi gases and low-density nuclear matter.