Simple calculation of the spatial evolution of atoms in a trap during occurrence of Bose-Einstein condensation.

Abstract

In this paper we present a simple calculation showing the evolution of the atomic spatial distribution for particles held in an external potential during the occurrence of Bose-Einstein condensation. This work is intended to complement a previous calculation done by us [Phys. Rev. A {bold 35}, 4354 (1987)]. The results obtained are compared to experiments performed recently. {copyright} {ital 1996 The American Physical Society.}