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/0702669 · Physical Review B

Hydrodynamic boundary condition for superfluid flow

Yves Pomeau A, David C K Roberts

Published Apr 4, 2008• 6 citations
arXivHTMLPDF

Abstract

We discuss the hydrodynamic boundary condition for a superfluid moving tangentially to a rough surface. Specifically, we argue that the scattering of quantum fluctuations off surface roughness affects the nature of the boundary condition, and that this has important consequences including a theorized critical speed and the presence of normal fluid at any nonzero speed, even if the boundary is held at zero temperature (i.e., a moving superfluid flow creates a sustained temperature difference between the superfluid and the boundary). This hydrodynamic boundary condition is relevant not only for superfluid helium experiments but also for experiments with trapped dilute Bose--Einstein condensates, in particular, those involving atomic waveguides near surfaces.

DOI
10.1103/physrevb.77.144508

Related papers

Casimir Friction II: Casimir effect and drag in zero temperature superfluids

David C K Roberts, Yves Pomeau A

We discuss a force arising from zero-temperature quantum fluctuations in a weakly interacting Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). We argue that there is a drag force on an object moving at speeds well below Landau's critical velocity, and motivate our argument by an analogy to the Casimir force in an electromagnetic vacuum. We sketch the calculation of this force for an object described by a general potential. We comment about the relevance of our results to the stability of superfluid flow, arguing that this effect is consistent with the observation of persistent currents and that this effect introduces new experimental observables. Finally, we describe a new hydryodynamic boundary condition for superfluid flow that takes into account the scattering of quantum fluctuations off a rough surface.

arXiv:cond-mat/0503757•Mar 31, 2005•2 citations

Superfluid critical velocity in dilute gas Bose-Einstein condensates

Chao Feng

This thesis examines the manifestation of the critical velocity for superfluidity in dilute gas Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs). Superfluidity is a macroscopic quantum phenomenon characterised by unique properties such as frictionless flow, high thermal conductivity and the presence of quantised vortices. Our study focuses on what is arguably the most well-known attribute: the ability for an object to move through a superfluid without experiencing a drag force when travelling below a threshold critical velocity.The Landau criterion for superfluidity predicts the critical velocity in a BEC is equal to the speed of sound, and this conclusion is supported by a large body of theoretical work. However, a number of experiments have observed lower critical velocities than theory predicts. In the first part of this thesis, we numerically model experiments on the superfluid critical velocity of an elongated, harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensate as reported by [P. Engels and C. Atherton, Phys. Rev. Lett. 99, 160405 (2007)]. These experiments swept a repulsive obstacle, formed by a optical dipole potential, through the long axis of a condensate at constant velocity. Their results found an increase in the resulting density fluctuations of the condensate above an obstacle velocity of v _ 0:3 mm s

•May 25, 2020•0 citations

When superfluids are a drag

David C K Roberts

The article considers the dramatic phenomenon of seemingly frictionless flow of slow-moving superfluids. Specifically the question of whether an object in a superfluid flow experiences any drag force is addressed. A brief account is given of the history of this problem and it is argued that recent advances in ultracold atomic physics can shed much new light on this problem. The article presents the commonly held notion that sufficiently slow-moving superfluids can flow without drag and also discusses research suggesting that scattering quantum fluctuations might cause drag in a superfluid moving at any speed.

Contemporary Physics•May 1, 2009•3 citations

Quantum drag forces below the superfluid critical velocity in dilute gas Bose-Einstein condensates

Chao Feng, Tod M. Wright, Matthew J. Davis

It has been proposed in recent years that an impurity moving in a superfluid will experience drag forces even below the Landau critical velocity [1–3]. Quantum fluctuations that are present in superfluid systems at zero temperature can scatter from impurities present in the fluid. If the impurity is moving, there will be an asymmetric Doppler shift associated with the scattered waves, which will result in a net drag force. This challenges the long-accepted notion of dissipationless flow in superfluids. Analytical estimates of this drag force in superfluid Bose-Einstein condensates using Bogoliubov methods have found a non-zero drag force, resulting from the most sensible choice of boundary conditions in an infinite system. Through stochastic simulations of the 1D Bose gas under the truncated Wigner formalism, we verify the existence of this sub-critical drag force and quantify the drag forces present. We will also determine whether dissipationless flow can be recovered in finite sized systems.

Optics InfoBase Conference Papers•Jan 1, 2011•0 citations

Vortices near surfaces of Bose-Einstein condensates

J. R. Anglin

The theory of vortex motion in a dilute superfluid of inhomogeneous density demands a boundary layer approach, in which different approximation schemes are employed close to and far from the vortex, and their results matched smoothly together. The most difficult part of this procedure is the hydrodynamic problem of the velocity field, many healing lengths away from the vortex core. This paper derives and exploits an exact solution of this problem in the two-dimensional case of a linear trapping potential, which is an idealization of the surface region of a large condensate. It thereby shows that vortices in inhomogeneous clouds are effectively ``dressed'' by a nontrivial distortion of their flow fields, that image vortices are not relevant to Thomas-Fermi surfaces, and that for condensates large compared to their surface depths, the energetic barrier to vortex penetration disappears at the Landau critical velocity for surface modes.

arXiv:cond-mat/0110389•Physical Review A•Jun 7, 2002•49 citations

Hydrodynamics of a Superfluid Condensate

Eugene P. Gross

The theory of the condensate of a weakly interacting Bose gas is developed. The condensate is described by a wavefunction ψ(x, t) normalized to the number of particles. It obeys a nonlinear self-consistent field equation. The solution in the presence of a rigid wall with the boundary condition of vanishing wavefunction involves a de Broglie length. This length depends on the mean potential energy per particle. The self-consistent field term keeps the density uniform except in localized spatial regions. In the hydrodynamical version, a key role is played by the quantum potential. A theory of quantized vortices and of general potential flows follows immediately. In contrast to classical hydrodynamics, the cores of vortices are completely determined by the de Broglie length and all energies are finite. Nonstationary disturbances of the condensate correspond to phonons, rotons, vortex waves etc. They can exchange momentum with rigid boundaries. This is compatible with the vanishing of the wavefunction at a boundary. This condition fully determines the dynamics of the system. These points are illustrated by considering the motion of a foreign ion in a Bose gas, a rotating container of fluid, and the Landau criterion for superfluidity.

Journal of Mathematical Physics•Feb 1, 1963•996 citations
We discuss the hydrodynamic boundary condition for a superfluid moving tangentially to a rough surface. Specifically, we argue that the scattering of quantum fluctuations off surface roughness affects the nature of the boundary condition, and that this has important consequences including a theorized critical speed and the presence of normal fluid at any nonzero speed, even if the boundary is held at zero temperature (i.e., a moving superfluid flow creates a sustained temperature difference between the superfluid and the boundary). This hydrodynamic boundary condition is relevant not only for superfluid helium experiments but also for experiments with trapped dilute Bose--Einstein condensates, in particular, those involving atomic waveguides near surfaces.
We discuss a force arising from zero-temperature quantum fluctuations in a weakly interacting Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC). We argue that there is a drag force on an object moving at speeds well below Landau's critical velocity, and motivate our argument by an analogy to the Casimir force in an electromagnetic vacuum. We sketch the calculation of this force for an object described by a general potential. We comment about the relevance of our results to the stability of superfluid flow, arguing that this effect is consistent with the observation of persistent currents and that this effect introduces new experimental observables. Finally, we describe a new hydryodynamic boundary condition for superfluid flow that takes into account the scattering of quantum fluctuations off a rough surface.
This thesis examines the manifestation of the critical velocity for superfluidity in dilute gas Bose-Einstein condensates (BECs). Superfluidity is a macroscopic quantum phenomenon characterised by unique properties such as frictionless flow, high thermal conductivity and the presence of quantised vortices. Our study focuses on what is arguably the most well-known attribute: the ability for an object to move through a superfluid without experiencing a drag force when travelling below a threshold critical velocity.The Landau criterion for superfluidity predicts the critical velocity in a BEC is equal to the speed of sound, and this conclusion is supported by a large body of theoretical work. However, a number of experiments have observed lower critical velocities than theory predicts. In the first part of this thesis, we numerically model experiments on the superfluid critical velocity of an elongated, harmonically trapped Bose-Einstein condensate as reported by [P. Engels and C. Atherton, Phys. Rev. Lett. 99, 160405 (2007)]. These experiments swept a repulsive obstacle, formed by a optical dipole potential, through the long axis of a condensate at constant velocity. Their results found an increase in the resulting density fluctuations of the condensate above an obstacle velocity of v _ 0:3 mm s
The article considers the dramatic phenomenon of seemingly frictionless flow of slow-moving superfluids. Specifically the question of whether an object in a superfluid flow experiences any drag force is addressed. A brief account is given of the history of this problem and it is argued that recent advances in ultracold atomic physics can shed much new light on this problem. The article presents the commonly held notion that sufficiently slow-moving superfluids can flow without drag and also discusses research suggesting that scattering quantum fluctuations might cause drag in a superfluid moving at any speed.
It has been proposed in recent years that an impurity moving in a superfluid will experience drag forces even below the Landau critical velocity [1–3]. Quantum fluctuations that are present in superfluid systems at zero temperature can scatter from impurities present in the fluid. If the impurity is moving, there will be an asymmetric Doppler shift associated with the scattered waves, which will result in a net drag force. This challenges the long-accepted notion of dissipationless flow in superfluids. Analytical estimates of this drag force in superfluid Bose-Einstein condensates using Bogoliubov methods have found a non-zero drag force, resulting from the most sensible choice of boundary conditions in an infinite system. Through stochastic simulations of the 1D Bose gas under the truncated Wigner formalism, we verify the existence of this sub-critical drag force and quantify the drag forces present. We will also determine whether dissipationless flow can be recovered in finite sized systems.
The theory of vortex motion in a dilute superfluid of inhomogeneous density demands a boundary layer approach, in which different approximation schemes are employed close to and far from the vortex, and their results matched smoothly together. The most difficult part of this procedure is the hydrodynamic problem of the velocity field, many healing lengths away from the vortex core. This paper derives and exploits an exact solution of this problem in the two-dimensional case of a linear trapping potential, which is an idealization of the surface region of a large condensate. It thereby shows that vortices in inhomogeneous clouds are effectively ``dressed'' by a nontrivial distortion of their flow fields, that image vortices are not relevant to Thomas-Fermi surfaces, and that for condensates large compared to their surface depths, the energetic barrier to vortex penetration disappears at the Landau critical velocity for surface modes.
The theory of the condensate of a weakly interacting Bose gas is developed. The condensate is described by a wavefunction ψ(x, t) normalized to the number of particles. It obeys a nonlinear self-consistent field equation. The solution in the presence of a rigid wall with the boundary condition of vanishing wavefunction involves a de Broglie length. This length depends on the mean potential energy per particle. The self-consistent field term keeps the density uniform except in localized spatial regions. In the hydrodynamical version, a key role is played by the quantum potential. A theory of quantized vortices and of general potential flows follows immediately. In contrast to classical hydrodynamics, the cores of vortices are completely determined by the de Broglie length and all energies are finite. Nonstationary disturbances of the condensate correspond to phonons, rotons, vortex waves etc. They can exchange momentum with rigid boundaries. This is compatible with the vanishing of the wavefunction at a boundary. This condition fully determines the dynamics of the system. These points are illustrated by considering the motion of a foreign ion in a Bose gas, a rotating container of fluid, and the Landau criterion for superfluidity.