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

arXiv:cond-mat/0608689 · Physical Review A

BEC-BCS crossover of a trapped Fermi gas without using the local density approximation

Rocío Jáuregui, R. Paredes, G. Toledo Sánchez

Published Jul 10, 2007• 15 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We perform a variational quantum Monte Carlo simulation of an interacting Fermi gas confined in a three dimensional harmonic potential. This gas is considered as the precursor system from which a molecular bosonic gas is formed. Based on the results of two-body calculations for trapped atoms, we propose a family of variational many-body wave functions that takes into account the qualitative different nature of the Bardeen-Cooper-Schieffer and Bose-Einstein condensate regimes as a function of the scattering length. Energies, densities, and correlation functions are calculated and compared with previous results for homogeneous gases. Universality tests at the unitarity limit are performed including the verification of the virial relation and the evaluation of the $\ensuremath{\beta}$ parameter.

DOI
10.1103/physreva.76.011604

Related papers

Simulation of an inhomogeneous Fermi gas through the BCS-BEC crossover

Rocío Jáuregui, R. Paredes, L. Rosales-Zárate +1 more

We perform a variational quantum Monte Carlo simulation of the transition from a Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer superfluid (BCS) to a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) at zero temperature. The model Hamiltonian involves an attractive short range two body interaction and the atoms number $2N =330$ is chosen so that, in the non-interacting limit, the ground state function corresponds to a closed shell configuration. The system is then characterized by the s-wave scattering length $a$ of the two-particle collisions in the gas, which is varied from negative to positive values, and the Fermi wave number $k_F$. Based on an extensive analysis of the s-wave two-body problem, one parameter variational many-body wave functions are proposed to describe the ground state of the interacting Fermi gas from BCS to BEC states. We exploit properties of antisymmetrized many-body functions to develop efficient techniques that permit variational calculations for a large number of particles. It is shown that a virial relation between the energy per particle and the trapping energy is approximately valid for $-0.1<1/k_Fa<3.4$. The influence of the harmonic trap and the interaction potential as exhibited in two-body correlation functions is also analyzed.

arXiv:0803.0559•Mar 4, 2008•0 citations

BEC-BCS crossover of a trapped two-component Fermi gas with unequal masses

J. von Stecher, Chris H. Greene, D. Blume

We determine the energetically lowest-lying states in the BEC-BCS crossover regime of $s$-wave interacting two-component Fermi gases under harmonic confinement by solving the many-body Schr\"odinger equation using two distinct approaches. Essentially exact basis set expansion techniques are applied to determine the energy spectrum of systems with $N=4$ fermions. Fixed-node diffusion Monte Carlo methods are applied to systems with up to $N=20$ fermions, and a discussion of different guiding functions used in the Monte Carlo approach to impose the proper symmetry of the fermionic system is presented. The energies are calculated as a function of the $s$-wave scattering length ${a}_{s}$ for $N=2--20$ fermions and different mass ratios $\ensuremath{\kappa}$ of the two species. On the Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) and BCS sides, our energies agree with analytically determined first-order correction terms. We extract the scattering length and the effective range of the dimer-dimer system up to $\ensuremath{\kappa}=20$. Our energies for the strongly interacting trapped system in the unitarity regime show essentially no shell structure, and are well described by a simple expression whose functional form can be derived using the local density approximation, with one or two parameters. The universal parameter $\ensuremath{\xi}$ for the trapped system for various $\ensuremath{\kappa}$ is determined, and comparisons with results for the homogeneous system are presented.

arXiv:0705.0671•Physical Review A•Nov 15, 2007•70 citations

Virial relations for ultracold trapped Fermi gases with finite range interactions through the Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer Bose–Einstein-condensate crossover

L. Rosales-Zárate, Rocío Jáuregui

We study the virial relations for ultracold trapped two-component Fermi gases in the case of short finite range interactions. Numerical verifications for such relations are reported through the Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer (BCS) Bose–Einstein-condensate (BEC) crossover. As an intermediate step, it is necessary to evaluate the partial derivatives of the many-body energy with respect to the inverse of the scattering length and with respect to the interaction range. Once the binding energy of the formed molecules in the BEC side is subtracted, the corresponding energy derivatives are found to have extreme values at the unitary limit. The value of the derivative with respect to the potential range in that limit is large enough to yield measurable differences between the total energy and twice the trapping energy unless the interacting system is described by extremely short potential ranges. The virial results are used to check the quality of the variational wavefunction involved in the calculations.

New Journal of Physics•Apr 20, 2010•0 citations

Dimensional crossover in two-component Fermi gases with attractive interactions

Mathias Macêdo Lima

This work studies zero-temperature Fermi gases with short-ranged and attractive interactions with focus on the dimensionality aspects by confining the system from three to two dimensions. Interacting Fermi gases are superfluids characterized as being strongly correlated if the scattering length is much larger than the other scales present. In the many-body context, this category of systems requires a careful treatment since mean-field approaches are not expected to hold under the conditions which define the strong pairing. For this reason, we employ quantum Monte Carlo methods to study the dimensionality effects in two-component Fermi gases in the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer to Bose-Einstein condensate (BCS-BEC) crossover. To be able to investigate such aspects, we consider a three-dimensional gas with periodic boundary conditions in the xy plane and a confining potential in the z direction capable of reducing the dimensionality of the system, which defines a dimensional BCS-BEC crossover. We calculate the equation of state as the energy per particle as a function of the dimensionality and as a function of the interaction parameter, which are characterized by the oscillator length in the z direction and the scattering length respectively. The greater confinement in the system lowers the interparticle distances, which increases the effects of the attractive interactions between antiparallel-spin fermions.We also calculate the density profile in the z direction over the crossover for different confinements and different interaction parameters to quantify their influence on the spatial distribution of the particles. This study connects the perspectives between theoretical and experimental works in low-dimensional ultracold Fermi gases by utilizing an approach that is similar to what it is realized in modern experiments.

•Mar 30, 2026•0 citations

BCS-BEC crossover with unequal-mass fermions

Roberto B. Diener, Mohit Randeria

We investigate the crossover from BCS pairing to molecular Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in an atomic gas with two fermion species with masses ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}\ensuremath{\ne}{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}$ tuned through a Feshbach resonance. We present results for the $T=0$ equation of state as a function of the scattering length including the effects of Gaussian fluctuations about the mean field ground state. We compute the ground state energy as a function of ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}/{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}$ at unitarity and find excellent agreement with the quantum Monte Carlo result for ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}/{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}=6.67$ for a $^{40}\mathrm{K}$-$^{6}\mathrm{Li}$ mixture. We show that the dimer scattering length in the BEC limit as a function of ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}/{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}$ compares well with the exact four-body results of Petrov et al. [J. Phys. B 38, S645 (2005)]. We also derive the condition for trapping frequencies to obtain an unpolarized gas in a harmonic trap.

arXiv:0906.4300•Physical Review A•Mar 15, 2010•19 citations

BCS-BEC crossover in two dimensions: A quantum Monte Carlo study

Gianluca Bertaina

We investigate the crossover from Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) superfluidity to Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in a two-dimensional Fermi gas at T = 0 using the fixed-node diffusion Monte Carlo method. We calculate the equation of state and the gap parameter as a function of the interaction strength, observing large deviations compared to mean-field predictions. In the BEC regime our results show the important role of dimer-dimer and atom-dimer interaction effects that are completely neglected in the mean-field picture. We also consider the highly polarized gas and the competition between a polaronic and a molecular picture.

AIP conference proceedings•Jan 1, 2012•3 citations
We perform a variational quantum Monte Carlo simulation of an interacting Fermi gas confined in a three dimensional harmonic potential. This gas is considered as the precursor system from which a molecular bosonic gas is formed. Based on the results of two-body calculations for trapped atoms, we propose a family of variational many-body wave functions that takes into account the qualitative different nature of the Bardeen-Cooper-Schieffer and Bose-Einstein condensate regimes as a function of the scattering length. Energies, densities, and correlation functions are calculated and compared with previous results for homogeneous gases. Universality tests at the unitarity limit are performed including the verification of the virial relation and the evaluation of the \ensuremathβ\ensuremath{\beta}\ensuremathβ parameter.
We perform a variational quantum Monte Carlo simulation of the transition from a Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer superfluid (BCS) to a Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) at zero temperature. The model Hamiltonian involves an attractive short range two body interaction and the atoms number 2N=3302N =3302N=330 is chosen so that, in the non-interacting limit, the ground state function corresponds to a closed shell configuration. The system is then characterized by the s-wave scattering length aaa of the two-particle collisions in the gas, which is varied from negative to positive values, and the Fermi wave number kFk_FkF​. Based on an extensive analysis of the s-wave two-body problem, one parameter variational many-body wave functions are proposed to describe the ground state of the interacting Fermi gas from BCS to BEC states. We exploit properties of antisymmetrized many-body functions to develop efficient techniques that permit variational calculations for a large number of particles. It is shown that a virial relation between the energy per particle and the trapping energy is approximately valid for −0.1<1/kFa<3.4-0.1<1/k_Fa<3.4−0.1<1/kF​a<3.4. The influence of the harmonic trap and the interaction potential as exhibited in two-body correlation functions is also analyzed.
We determine the energetically lowest-lying states in the BEC-BCS crossover regime of sss-wave interacting two-component Fermi gases under harmonic confinement by solving the many-body Schr\"odinger equation using two distinct approaches. Essentially exact basis set expansion techniques are applied to determine the energy spectrum of systems with N=4N=4N=4 fermions. Fixed-node diffusion Monte Carlo methods are applied to systems with up to N=20N=20N=20 fermions, and a discussion of different guiding functions used in the Monte Carlo approach to impose the proper symmetry of the fermionic system is presented. The energies are calculated as a function of the sss-wave scattering length as{a}_{s}as​ for N=2−−20N=2--20N=2−−20 fermions and different mass ratios $\ensuremath{\kappa}$ of the two species. On the Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) and BCS sides, our energies agree with analytically determined first-order correction terms. We extract the scattering length and the effective range of the dimer-dimer system up to $\ensuremath{\kappa}=20$. Our energies for the strongly interacting trapped system in the unitarity regime show essentially no shell structure, and are well described by a simple expression whose functional form can be derived using the local density approximation, with one or two parameters. The universal parameter $\ensuremath{\xi}$ for the trapped system for various $\ensuremath{\kappa}$ is determined, and comparisons with results for the homogeneous system are presented.
We study the virial relations for ultracold trapped two-component Fermi gases in the case of short finite range interactions. Numerical verifications for such relations are reported through the Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer (BCS) Bose–Einstein-condensate (BEC) crossover. As an intermediate step, it is necessary to evaluate the partial derivatives of the many-body energy with respect to the inverse of the scattering length and with respect to the interaction range. Once the binding energy of the formed molecules in the BEC side is subtracted, the corresponding energy derivatives are found to have extreme values at the unitary limit. The value of the derivative with respect to the potential range in that limit is large enough to yield measurable differences between the total energy and twice the trapping energy unless the interacting system is described by extremely short potential ranges. The virial results are used to check the quality of the variational wavefunction involved in the calculations.
This work studies zero-temperature Fermi gases with short-ranged and attractive interactions with focus on the dimensionality aspects by confining the system from three to two dimensions. Interacting Fermi gases are superfluids characterized as being strongly correlated if the scattering length is much larger than the other scales present. In the many-body context, this category of systems requires a careful treatment since mean-field approaches are not expected to hold under the conditions which define the strong pairing. For this reason, we employ quantum Monte Carlo methods to study the dimensionality effects in two-component Fermi gases in the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer to Bose-Einstein condensate (BCS-BEC) crossover. To be able to investigate such aspects, we consider a three-dimensional gas with periodic boundary conditions in the xy plane and a confining potential in the z direction capable of reducing the dimensionality of the system, which defines a dimensional BCS-BEC crossover. We calculate the equation of state as the energy per particle as a function of the dimensionality and as a function of the interaction parameter, which are characterized by the oscillator length in the z direction and the scattering length respectively. The greater confinement in the system lowers the interparticle distances, which increases the effects of the attractive interactions between antiparallel-spin fermions.We also calculate the density profile in the z direction over the crossover for different confinements and different interaction parameters to quantify their influence on the spatial distribution of the particles. This study connects the perspectives between theoretical and experimental works in low-dimensional ultracold Fermi gases by utilizing an approach that is similar to what it is realized in modern experiments.
We investigate the crossover from BCS pairing to molecular Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in an atomic gas with two fermion species with masses ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}\ensuremath{\ne}{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}$ tuned through a Feshbach resonance. We present results for the T=0T=0T=0 equation of state as a function of the scattering length including the effects of Gaussian fluctuations about the mean field ground state. We compute the ground state energy as a function of ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}/{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}$ at unitarity and find excellent agreement with the quantum Monte Carlo result for ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}/{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}=6.67$ for a 40K^{40}\mathrm{K}40K-6Li^{6}\mathrm{Li}6Li mixture. We show that the dimer scattering length in the BEC limit as a function of ${m}_{\ensuremath{\uparrow}}/{m}_{\ensuremath{\downarrow}}$ compares well with the exact four-body results of Petrov et al. [J. Phys. B 38, S645 (2005)]. We also derive the condition for trapping frequencies to obtain an unpolarized gas in a harmonic trap.
We investigate the crossover from Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) superfluidity to Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) in a two-dimensional Fermi gas at T = 0 using the fixed-node diffusion Monte Carlo method. We calculate the equation of state and the gap parameter as a function of the interaction strength, observing large deviations compared to mean-field predictions. In the BEC regime our results show the important role of dimer-dimer and atom-dimer interaction effects that are completely neglected in the mean-field picture. We also consider the highly polarized gas and the competition between a polaronic and a molecular picture.