arXiv:quant-ph/0601202 · New Journal of Physics
Probing BEC phase fluctuations with atomic quantum dots
M Bruderer, D Jaksch
Abstract
We consider the dephasing of two internal states |0⟩ and |1⟩ of a trapped impurity atom, a so-called atomic quantum dot (AQD), where only state |1⟩ couples to a Bose–Einstein condensate (BEC). A direct relation between the dephasing of the internal states of the AQD and the temporal phase fluctuations of the BEC is established. Based on this relation we suggest a scheme to probe BEC phase fluctuations non-destructively via dephasing measurements of the AQD. In particular, the scheme allows to trace the dependence of the phase fluctuations on the trapping geometry of the BEC.