arXiv:cond-mat/0306076 · New Journal of Physics
Mean field ground state of a spin-1 condensate in a magnetic field
Wenxian Zhang, Su Yi, Li You
Abstract
We revisit the topic of the mean field ground state of a spin-1 atomic condensate inside a uniform magnetic field ( B ) under the constraints that both the total number of atoms ( N ) and the magnetization ( ) are conserved. In the presence of an internal state (spin component) independent trap, we also investigate the dependence of the so-called single spatial mode approximation on the magnitude of the magnetic field and . Our results indicate that the quadratic Zeeman effect is an important factor in balancing the mean field energy from elastic atom–atom collisions that are known to conserve both N and .