Abstract In this paper, we discuss the search for the Fulde–Ferrell–Larkin–Ovchinnikov superfluid phase in an ultracold gas of Fermi atoms. A possible obstacle to obtaining this phase in known experiments is, first of all, the separation of the gas into a spin-balanced phase and a completely polarized phase. This phase separation is caused by confinement in an external parabolic potential. A second possible obstacle is the insufficiently low temperature-to-Fermi energy ratio. Trapping the gas in a large-scale optical-dipole trap with a flat potential inside will avoid phase separation. Moreover, the trap will allow an increase in the number of atoms, which, in turn, can lead to a decrease in the temperature relative to the Fermi energy. The results of a primary experiment on loading atoms into a similar trap from a magneto-optical trap are presented.
Abstract In this paper, we discuss the search for the Fulde–Ferrell–Larkin–Ovchinnikov superfluid phase in an ultracold gas of Fermi atoms. A possible obstacle to obtaining this phase in known experiments is, first of all, the separation of the gas into a spin-balanced phase and a completely polarized phase. This phase separation is caused by confinement in an external parabolic potential. A second possible obstacle is the insufficiently low temperature-to-Fermi energy ratio. Trapping the gas in a large-scale optical-dipole trap with a flat potential inside will avoid phase separation. Moreover, the trap will allow an increase in the number of atoms, which, in turn, can lead to a decrease in the temperature relative to the Fermi energy. The results of a primary experiment on loading atoms into a similar trap from a magneto-optical trap are presented.
We theoretically explore a promising route to achieve the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) state in a spin-imbalanced ultracold Fermi gas. In the current stage of cold atom physics, search for this exotic Fermi superfluid is facing two serious difficulties: One is the desperate destruction of the FFLO long-range order by FFLO pairing fluctuations, which precludes entering the phase through a second-order transition, even in three dimension. The other is the fierce competition with the phase separation into the BCS (Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer) state and the spin-polarized normal state. By including strong FFLO pairing fluctuations within the framework of the strong-coupling theory developed by Nozi\`eres and Schmitt-Rink, we show that the anisotropy of Fermi surface introduced by an optical lattice makes the FFLO state stable against the paring fluctuations. This stabilized FFLO state is also found to be able to overcome the competition with the phase separation under a certain condition. Since the realization of unconventional Fermi superfluids is one of the most exciting challenges in cold atom physics, our results would contribute to the further development of this field.
We present a systematic study of quantum phases in a one-dimensional spin-polarized Fermi gas. Three comparative theoretical methods are used to explore the phase diagram at zero temperature: the mean-field theory with either an order parameter in a single-plane-wave form or a self-consistently determined order parameter using the Bogoliubov--de Gennes equations, as well as the exact Bethe ansatz method. We find that a spatially inhomogeneous Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov phase, which lies between the fully paired Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) state and the fully polarized normal state, dominates most of the phase diagram of a uniform gas. The phase transition from the BCS state to the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov phase is of second order, and therefore there are no phase separation states in one-dimensional homogeneous polarized gases. This is in sharp contrast to the three-dimensional situation, where a phase separation regime is predicted to occupy a very large space in the phase diagram. We conjecture that the prediction of the dominance of the phase separation phases in three dimension could be an artifact of the non-self-consistent mean-field approximation, which is heavily used in the study of three-dimensional polarized Fermi gases. We consider also the effect of a harmonic trapping potential on the phase diagram, and find that in this case the trap generally leads to phase separation, in accord with the experimental observations for a trapped gas in three dimensions. We finally investigate the local fermionic density of states of the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov ansatz. A two-energy-gap structure appears, which could be used as an experimental probe of the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov states.
The Fulde-Ferrell Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) type superconductor is an exotic form of matter known as a supersolid because it simultaneously supports superfluid and magnetic order. In both condensed matter and ultracold atomic gases, this phase has yet to be conclusively observed despite long interest in both theory and experiment. In one-dimension (1D), unlike expectations for higher dimensions, the FFLO phase is found in a large region of the phase diagram [1]. The effect of quantum and thermal fluctuations, however, are expected to be reduced in higher dimensions. These considerations motivated the proposal to search for FFLO near the 1D-3D dimensional crossover [2], which we have identified and characterized [3]. We confine a spin-imbalanced Fermi gas of lithium 6 to an array of 1D tubes using a 2D optical lattice. We bring the system into the dimensional crossover by increasing the inter-tube tunneling rate and using a Feshbach resonance to tune interactions. The periodicity of these domain walls, which depends on the magnitude of the polarization, is a definitive signature of the FFLO phase. In this work, we develop new experimental and analytical methods to extract periodic signals that, if they indeed are domain walls, lay the foundation for full confirmation of the FFLO phase. [1] Y. A. Liao, A. S. C. Rittner, T. Paprotta, W. Li, G. B. Partridge, R. G. Hulet, S. K. Baur, and E. J. Mueller, “Spin-imbalance in a one-dimensional Fermi gas,” Nature 467, 567 (2010). [2] M. M. Parish, S. K. Baur, E. J. Mueller, and D. A. Huse, “Quasi-One- Dimensional Polarized Fermi Superfluids,” Phys. Rev. Lett. 99, 250403 (2007). [3] M. C. Revelle, J. A. Fry, B. A. Olsen, and R. G. Hulet, “1D to 3D Crossover of a Spin-Imbalanced Fermi Gas,” Physical Review Letters 117 (2016).
We investigate the finite-temperature properties of an ultracold atomic Fermi gas with spin population imbalance in a highly elongated harmonic trap. Previous studies at zero temperature showed that the gas stays in an exotic spatially inhomogeneous Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) superfluid state at the trap center; while moving to the edge, the system changes into either a nonpolarized Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer superfluid (P<Pc) or a fully polarized normal gas (P>Pc), depending on the smallness of the spin polarization P, relative to a critical value Pc. In this work, we show how these two phase-separation phases evolve with increasing temperature, and thereby construct a finite-temperature phase diagram. For typical interactions, we find that the exotic FFLO phase survives below one-tenth of Fermi degeneracy temperature, which seems to be accessible in the current experiment. The density profile, equation of state, and specific heat of the polarized system have been calculated and discussed in detail. Our results are useful for the ongoing experiment at Rice University on the search for FFLO states in quasi-one-dimensional polarized Fermi gases.
This is a study of the theory of ultracold atomic Fermi gases, especially in optical lattices, ie. periodic potentials created with laser light. Superfluidity is studied especially in the case of spin population imbalanced Fermi gases and phase diagrams are calculated from mean field theory. The Fulde-Ferrel-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) phase is shown to occupy a larger region of the phase diagram than previously predicted for purely harmonically trapped systems. Methods for detecting the FFLO phase are suggested. As another topic, excitations in a superfluid Fermi gas, their signatures and use in sensor applications are studied. The thesis is divided in chapters in the following way: Chapter 1 is an introduction to the research field of ultracold quantum gases, including references to some of the most important experiments done with the fermionic isotopes. Chapter 2 is an introduction to optical lattices and their major experimental characteristics. Chapter 3 deals with extensions of BCS-theory, mainly the FFLO and the detection of the phases predicted by the extensions. In chapter 4 I discuss excitations in BCS-like states and their applications in sensing electro-magnetic fields. Chapter 5 contains the conclusions.
Superconductivity and superfluidity of fermions require, within the BCS theory, matching of the Fermi energies of the two interacting Fermion species. Difference in the number densities of the two species leads either to a normal state, to phase separation, or---potentially---to exotic forms of superfluidity such as Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) state, Sarma state, or breached pair state. We consider ultracold Fermi gases with polarization, i.e., spin-density imbalance. We show that, due to the gases being trapped and isolated from the environment in terms of particle exchange, exotic forms of superfluidity appear as a shell around the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) superfluid core of the gas and, for large density imbalance, in the core as well. We obtain these results by describing the effect of the trapping potential by using the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations. For comparison to experiments, we calculate also the condensate fraction, and show that, in the center of the trap, a polarized superfluid leads to a small dip in the central density difference. We compare the results to those given by local density approximation and find qualitatively different behavior.