Quantum atomic matter near two-dimensional materials in microgravity

Abstract

Novel two-dimensional atomically flat materials, such as graphene and transition-metal dichalcogenides, exhibit unconventional Dirac electronic spectra. We propose to effectively engineer their interactions with cold atoms in microgravity, leading to a synergy between complex electronic and atomic collective quantum phases and phenomena. Dirac materials are susceptible to manipulation and quantum engineering via changes in their electronic properties by application of strain, doping with carriers, adjustment of their dielectric environment, etc. Consequently the interaction of atoms with such materials, namely the van der Waals/Casimir–Polder interaction, can be effectively manipulated, leading to the potential observation of physical effects such as quantum reflection off atomically thin materials and confined Bose–Einstein condensate frequency shifts.