Using matter waves that are trapped in a deep optical lattice, dissipationless directed transport is demonstrated to occur if the single-band quantum dynamics is periodically tilted on one half of the lattice by a monochromatic field. Most importantly, the directed transport can exist for almost all system parameters, even after averaged over a broad range of single-band initial states. The directed transport is theoretically explained within ac-scattering theory. Total reflection phenomena associated with the matter waves traveling from a tilting-free region to a tilted region are emphasized. The results are of relevance to ultracold physics and solid-state physics, and may lead to powerful means of selective, coherent, and directed transport of cold particles in optical lattices.
Using matter waves that are trapped in a deep optical lattice, dissipationless directed transport is demonstrated to occur if the single-band quantum dynamics is periodically tilted on one half of the lattice by a monochromatic field. Most importantly, the directed transport can exist for almost all system parameters, even after averaged over a broad range of single-band initial states. The directed transport is theoretically explained within ac-scattering theory. Total reflection phenomena associated with the matter waves traveling from a tilting-free region to a tilted region are emphasized. The results are of relevance to ultracold physics and solid-state physics, and may lead to powerful means of selective, coherent, and directed transport of cold particles in optical lattices.
Coherent directed quantum transport of ultracold rubidium atoms in an optical realization of a quantum rocking ratchet is investigated experimentally. By changing parameters of the underlying periodic modulations we resolve transport resonances in the mean momentum of a dilute atomic Bose-Einstein condensate. These resonances are attributed to the avoided crossings between Floquet eigenstates which are widely separated on the energy scale. By increasing the amplitude of the drive we observe a theoretically predicted bifurcation of a single-peak resonance into a doublet. Our results prove the feasibility of fine experimental control over nonequlibrium, coherent quantum transport in ac-driven optical lattices
Quantum gases in optical lattices allow for fundamental studies in atomic and condensed-matter physics and the exploration of novel effects. After a brief introduction to the fundamentals of quantum gas experiments in optical lattices, we discuss two recent experiments focusing on driven matter waves in a one-dimensional optical lattice. The first experiment uses a tilted bichromatic optical lattice to investigate the interplay of disorder and collisional interactions in the accelerated transport of a Bose-Einstein condensate. Here, a screening effect is observed, in which the interactions effectively cancel the damping of Bloch oscillations induced by a (quasi-)disordered potential. This effect can be understood through a modification of the underlying band structure by the interactions. The second experiment studies the dynamics of a weakly trapped condensate resonantly coupled to the orbitals of a strongly confining state-selective lattice. We observe momentum distributions that correspond to matter wave diffraction from a periodic structure; however, the diffractive dynamics remain strongly linked to the internal-state Rabi oscillations. In the regime investigated, which we call the nonadiabatic regime, no diffracting potential can be defined. We show how only for much stronger coupling, the internal and external dynamics decouple, transitioning from nonadiabatic diffraction to the well-studied Kapitza-Dirac diffraction. We further investigate prospects for realizing dissipative spin models in our ultracold atomic gas experiment. To this end, we develop and test in the laboratory several possible implementations of effective spins with differential coupling to a superfluid background and examine their viability for a realization of the spin-boson model. | 94 pages
We present theoretical and numerical results on the dynamics of ultracold atoms in an accelerated single- and double-periodic optical lattice. In the single-periodic potential Bloch oscillations can be used to generate fast directed transport with very little dispersion. The dynamics in the double-periodic system is dominated by Bloch–Zener oscillations, i.e. the interplay of Bloch oscillations and Zener tunnelling between the subbands. Apart from directed transport, the latter system permits various interesting applications, such as widely tunable matter wave beam splitters and Mach–Zehnder interferometry. As an application, a method for efficient probing of small nonlinear mean-field interactions is suggested. Furthermore, the influence of the nonlinearity onto the Bloch bands, the breakdown of adiabaticity and the stability of the dynamics is discussed and analysed by numerical results.
Summary form only given. Since optical lattices can be used to investigate both classical energy band transport and the corresponding quantized states, they are ideal for studying the classical-quantum correspondence. Here, we investigate this correspondence for cold sodium atoms in a one-dimensional optical lattice along the x-direction and a three-dimensional harmonic trap. The energy versus crystal momentum dispersion relation for the lowest energy band of the optical lattice, together with the harmonic potential, define an effective Hamiltonian that we use to calculate classical atom paths. When a symmetry axis of the harmonic trap is aligned with the optical lattice, the atoms follow stable trajectories similar to Bloch oscillations But tilting this symmetry axis away from the optical lattice direction induces a transition to strongly chaotic dynamics.
Abstract The geometry of optical lattices can be engineered, allowing the study of atomic transport along paths arranged in patterns that are otherwise difficult to probe in the solid state. A question feasible to atomic systems is related to the speed of matter-wave propagation as a function of the lattice geometry. To address this issue, we investigated, theoretically, the quantum transport of noninteracting and weakly-interacting ultracold fermionic atoms in several 2D optical lattice geometries. We find that the triangular lattice has a higher propagation velocity compared to the square lattice, and the cross-linked square lattice has an even faster propagation velocity. The increase results from the mixing of the momentum states which leads to different group velocities in quantum systems. Standard band theory provides an explanation and allows for a systematic way to search and design systems with controllable matter-wave propagation. Moreover, the presence of a flat band such as in a two-leg ladder geometry leads to a dynamical density discontinuity due to its localized atoms. Possible realizations of those dynamical phenomena are discussed.
This thesis includes both experimental and theoretical investigations of fluctuation-induced transport phenomena, presented in a series of nine papers, by studies of the dynamics of cold atoms in dissipative optical lattices. With standard laser cooling techniques about 108 cesium atoms are accumulated, cooled to a few μK, and transferred into a dissipative optical lattice. An optical lattice is a periodic light-shift potential, and in dissipative optical lattice the light field is sufficiently close to resonance for incoherent light scattering to be of importance. This provides the system with a diffusive force, but also with a friction through laser cooling mechanisms. In the dissipative optical lattices the friction and the diffusive force will eventually reach a steady state. At steady state, the thermal energy is low enough, compared to the potential depth, for the atoms to be localized close to the potential minima, but high enough for the atoms to occasionally make inter-well flights. This leads to a Brownian motion of the atoms in the optical lattices. In the normal case these random walks average to zero, leading to a symmetric, isotropic diffusion of the atoms. If the optical lattices are tilted, the symmetry is broken and the diffusion will be biased. This leads to a fluctuation-induced drift of the atoms. In this thesis an investigation of such drifts, for an optical lattice tilted by the gravitational force, is presented. We show that even though the tilt over a potential period is small compared to the potential depth, it clearly affect the dynamics of the atoms, and despite the complex details of the system it can, to a good approximation, be described by the Langevin equation formalism for a particle in a periodic potential. The linear drifts give evidence of stop-and-go dynamics where the atoms escape the potential wells and travel over one or more wells before being recaptured. Brownian motors open the possibility of creating fluctuation-induced drifts in the absence of bias forces, if two requirements are fulfilled: the symmetry has to be broken and the system has to be brought out of thermal equilibrium. By utilizing two distinguishable optical lattices, with a relative spatial phase and unequal transfer rates between them, these requirements can be fulfilled. In this thesis, such a Brownian motor is realized, and drifts in arbitrary directions in 3D are demonstrated. We also demonstrate a real-time steering of the transport as well as drifts along pre-designed paths. Moreover, we present measurements and discussions of performance characteristics of the motor, and we show that the required asymmetry can be obtained in multiple ways.